The Fling
by Irish Thorn
Summary: Will a relationship that started out so simple, become too complicated to handle? Rated M for SC and language.
1. Chapter 1

_Special Thanks to my beta ravenclawlove. You are easily the best beta ever!_

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything associated with Harry Potter. I know, hard to believe..._

"She doesn't mean anything to me, Freddie!" George was sick of saying this exact same thing to his twin for the past six months. "Really, she's just a good shag!" It had been exactly six months to the day since he had started having regular sex with Hermione Granger. She was upset one day when she came into the shop, having just broken up with his younger brother Ron Weasley, so he had started flirting with her to get her to lighten up. Finally, she had given him a calculating look and bluntly asked him if he would be willing to have sex with her to help her forget, even for a short while. Well, being the Weasley twin that he was, he wasn't about to say no to a lady in distress.

Since then, the two had used each other without any remorse whatsoever. If George had a bad day at the shop he would floo to her flat and she would just know what he needed. In return, if the stress of her horrible job as Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement got to her, she would show up at the twins' flat above their shop and allow George to make her forget everything except his name. The twin in question smirked at this thought. It really was empowering for someone to make _the _Hermione Granger forget everything that she keeps in that overly large brain of hers, except for the name of the guy shagging her.

"Well, Georgie, it just looks to me you're Granger's bitch. I mean, no matter what you're doing, if she shows up, you go following her like a lost puppy back into your room," Fred was grinning widely at his observation. "Never seen anything like it, mate!" To this, George mumbled something about where Fred could shove his observations and turned to leave the kitchen in their flat, where they had been having their 'discussion'. Without giving anything Fred had said another thought, George grabbed a handful of floo powder, stepped into the fireplace in their living room, and yelled out his destination. As he was swirling through the space connecting his fireplace to his destination, he could swear that he heard the distinct sound of Fred's laughter following him.

He stepped out of the fireplace and took a quick look around the room. He was in a cozy living room with book shelves lining two of the walls to his right near a large desk. He took another step into the room, listening for some noise to indicate if someone was actually there. He was not disappointed when a witch finally walked into the living room, presumably having heard the floo activate. Upon seeing who it was, she gave him a sympathetic look.

"Hey, George. Rough day?" Without waiting for his answer, Hermione walked over, took his hand and led him down the hallway of her two-bedroom flat, and into her room. Once the door closed behind them, George picked her up, spun her around, and roughly slammed her back against the door before pressing a hungry kiss to her lips. This position caused her to wrap her legs around George's waist to steady herself as her lips parted under his assault. He quickly took advantage, ramming his tongue into her mouth to fight and press against hers. At this, she let out a light moan. It was always like that between them: rough; they were only using each other to relieve stress after all. What better way to do that then mindless sex without consequences?

Hermione's nimble fingers began to tug at the bottom of George's t-shirt. He leaned away from her just long enough to pull off and fling the offending article across the room before leaning back in to place little bites down her neck. The witch's head fell back against the door with a dull thud as she let out another moan of pleasure. Her moans always drove him on, making him want to cause more of them. He reached up with both hands and ripped her dark blue button down shirt apart, buttons flying in every direction. He proceeded to knead her breasts, squeezing roughly and unabashedly pinching her nipples through her bra. The constant stream of breathy moans she was emitting were causing him to grow hard against her thigh.

When she could no longer take the sensations he was sending straight to her core, she reached back and began an intense struggle with her bra, trying to get it off so she could feel his hands on her flesh. George noticed her attempt to remove the article and just reached behind her and unsnapped it with one hand.

"Show off," Hermione grumbled as George ducked his head down to take one of her peaked nipples into his mouth. She felt him smirk around the sensitive area and moaned, arching her back and forcing him to take in more of her breast. He easily complied, now completely aroused by the panting witch he was holding against the door with just his knee between her legs. Emitting a rough growl, he let her fall to the ground, scooped her up, and tossed her unceremoniously onto her bed across the room. She landed with a light _oomph_ and before she could even comprehend what he had done, he was pushing her back into her bed.

He took back his position at her breasts with more force, biting and sucking hard on the pink pearls that were her nipples. This caused Hermione to cry out as she felt the pressure building in her lower abdomen. George knew she was close, so he ground his hard member against her aching core. She hadn't realized before he did that that he was very naked. This information just caused her to scream as she hit her climax and waves of pleasure rolled over her. As the pleasure receded, she noticed that George had wasted no time in removing her back dress pants and vaguely noticed his grunt of approval that she hadn't been wearing any knickers.

He reached his hand down between her legs and jammed three fingers inside of her. Feeling her quiver around his fingers, he deemed her ready and taking himself in hand, shoved his erection deep inside of her. They both moaned loudly at the initial friction it caused and the two immediately began thrusting their hips together, desperate to reach their own ends. George set the rhythm that he wanted and Hermione complied, this was for him after all. She could feel the dull ache in the deepest part of her lower belly that signified her coming orgasm. This caused her to groan deeply as the feeling built.

George, knowing exactly what the sound meant, reached down and pressed his thumb to her clit, causing her to gasp out his name with her completion. Wasting no time at all, he pulled out of her, gripped her by the thighs, flipped her small body over, pushed her so she was up on her hands and knees, then quickly rammed back into her. She moaned as he stimulated the still quivering walls of her pussy. He smacked her arse a few times, causing a sharp gasp each time, while keeping his other hand steady on the small of her back.

George felt himself getting close and leaned over Hermione's body to roll her right nipple between the fingers of his right hand. She gasped again and suddenly came around him, screaming his name, and milking his cock of his own climax, which he released with a grunt of '_Mia_' against her neck. They both struggled to catch their breath before he rolled off of her and collapsed onto the bed beside her as they both came down from their highs. It was silent, save for their breathing for a few minutes before either one of them spoke.

"Thanks, Mione." George only ever called her Mia when they were shagging. It was far to intimate of a name for him to use in normal conversation, so by unspoken agreement he wouldn't use it in front of people.

"No problem, Georgie." Hermione sounded sated, and had yet to flip onto her back from where she had collapsed after George let go of her. It was quiet for awhile longer before George stood to put his clothes back on. He had just finished pulling his shirt back on and was getting ready to walk out when she spoke again. "I'm not going to be here tomorrow night, I have a date." The sentence sounded sleepy even to her own ears but she knew he heard her when he grunted in response before leaving her room.

George left via the floo, coming through to his own flat. He took a moment to listen for Fred before plopping down on the couch in front of the fire. He wasn't entirely sure why Fred had gotten to him earlier, he usually just laughed with him about his 'fuck-buddy'. That was exactly what they were, nothing more, and Fred was always teasing the two of them about it, even going so far as to hint at it in front of their mother and the rest of the family at the weekly family Sunday dinners that Hermione still attended even after her and Ron had called it off. It had hit a nerve earlier that night though. It was Friday night and he hadn't had a date in months. Hearing Hermione say she had one for the next night only made it seem that much worse.

He would have to stay away from her until Sunday. He could do that. It's not like he was dependent on her in any way. Just sitting there by himself made him itch to go back to her place, so he wouldn't have to be alone. What was wrong with him? He was a Weasley twin for Godric's sake! He stood up and walked into the kitchen, pulling a butter beer out of the fridge. Taking one look at the bottle he had yet to open, he knew he would need something stronger. Leaving the butter beer on the counter, he crossed the room and pulled a bottle of Fire Whiskey from a cupboard. Maybe if he drank himself into a stupor he wouldn't have to think about her anymore.

Hermione was only a friend. A very good friend. A very good friend whom he shagged on a regular basis. They usually had a cup of tea after they recovered from their intense fuck, and talked through whatever was bothering them. He hadn't wanted to stay that night. It was the first night that he left right away. Hopefully she wouldn't be offended. And with that last thought he opened the bottle of whiskey still in his hand and downed a few mouthfuls.

Maybe it was time for him to date like a normal person instead of just using Hermione all the time. It couldn't be good for her emotions. Weren't girls usually sensitive about stuff like this? Well, maybe not Hermione. This was her idea to begin with and apparently she wasn't bothered at all by the idea of dating someone while shagging him. His thoughts were becoming more and more sentimental the more he drank. Perhaps it was time to call it a night.

He decided to not act any differently toward her at any point in time. He would treat her as a friend, the same as he always had. With that last lingering thought, he drug himself off to bed, fully satisfied in his decision.

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	2. Chapter 2

_Many thanks to ravenclawlove for being such a wonderful beta!_

"Fred! George!" The annoyingly persistent voice penetrated through George's alcohol hazed mind, causing him to groan and clutch his head against the onslaught of pain. "Fred!" Loud banging nearby ensued, forcing another groan of pain from George. There was quiet for a moment, quickly lulling him into a false sense of security as his eyes began to drift shut once again. "George!" The banging was much louder this time, as it was on the door to his room instead of Fred's. "Get up, you lazy git!"

"Sod off!" George's plea was completely ignored as his sister stormed into the room and ripped the nice warm covers off of him. "Go away, Gin!" Once again, the plea was ignored as she started jumping up and down on his bed, causing him to bounce around.

"Get up! Get up! Get up!" Ginny's chant continued until George reached out and grabbed her ankle, making her crash beside of him. From this angle she just proceeded to try to bodily push him out of bed, grunting with the effort. "You're... not... making... this... easy!" she grunted out between the rough shoves to her brother's person. George tried to ignore the surprisingly strong girl by burying his head under his pillow. He wasn't sure why he always forgot how strong she was, probably because she looked so innocent— _yeah right_. With one last shove, George landed on the hard floor of his room with a grunt.

"What the fuck, Gin!" Now his head was really splitting. He struggled up and finally managed to make it to his feet with minimal shaking.

"Oh, good! You're up!" With that cheerful statement she skipped out of his room to let him get dressed. It took a few minutes of genuine effort to force himself into the clothes he had on last night. Once he had managed that, he drug himself out to the kitchen, where he could hear voices and the clattering of dishes.

"Morning, Georgie! You look like shite!" Fred laughed hard from his spot at the kitchen table. George just grunted in response, making his way to the cupboard to the left of the stove, where the hangover potions were kept. He pulled one out, unstoppered it, and tossed it back. After about thirty seconds, he felt immensely better and turned to face his own kitchen. He about had a heart attack when he saw Fred, Ron, Ginny, Harry, and Hermione all staring at him with mildly amused expressions.

"Morning, all," George turned and left, heading to the bathroom. Everyone in the kitchen resumed their conversations as they heard the water kick on. It was obvious he wanted a shower before he graced them all with his presence. He stood under the spray, letting the water cascade down his back and chest. He hoped that this would wake him up enough to face the small crowd of people that were over for breakfast. Or was it lunch? Who cares? George stepped out of the shower and instantly realized that he was an idiot. He hadn't bothered to stop for clean clothes on his way to the bathroom and there was no way that he was going to put the dirty ones on.

It's not like he couldn't walk half naked around his own house. Since when was he shy around any of the people sitting out there anyways? He slung a towel across his hips and left for his bedroom. He didn't encounter anyone on the short walk down the hall and quickly threw on the first clean pair of jeans he found, and an old Weasley sweater that his mum had made with a big 'F' (Did he mean to put Fred's sweater on?) on the front. He went back into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee before sitting at the table. He began piling blueberry pancakes onto the empty plate at the place he had sat at.

"Feeling better, George?" Ginny was smiling sweetly from beside of him.

"Yeah. Thanks, Gin. Don't know what I would do without you." Everyone snickered at his sarcasm, as Ginny launched into an explanation as to why they were all there.

"We thought that you and Fred would like to come with us when we go out. Mione and I were going to go shopping since she has a date tonight and she _needs_ a new dress, shoes, and accessories. When I mentioned that to Harry, he asked if he and Ron could tag along so they could get new robes for the ministry's ball in three weeks. That's when I realized that you two probably have no idea what you're wearing to that, let alone who you're taking, so you two will be going as well. We'll need to stop out in muggle London for Mione's dress first, and we should probably get her another dress for the ball too, Well, maybe you guys can just meet us at the Leaky for lunch at noon and we can go to Diagon Alley from there." This entire thing was said with one breath of air. As Ginny paused to continue talking, George swallowed the bite of pancake still in his mouth and cut her off.

"Sounds good, Gin. I'll be there." His favorite and only, little sister grinned at him before jumping up, grabbing Hermione's hand, and running down the stairs, and out of the shop so they could apparate. "What time is it now?"

"Eight twenty-five," Ron managed to answer around the mouthful of food he was chewing.

"So early!" George groaned to the amusement of his twin.

"So, Georgie," Fred started in a sing-song voice, immediately alerting George to what he was going to say. "Care to explain why there was an empty bottle of Fire Whiskey on the counter this morning when I got up?"

"Not really, Fred. Why?" George wasn't about to divulge any of his thoughts from the night before in front of Harry and Ron.

"Are you sure it doesn't have anything to do with where you went last night? Or should I say _who_ you went to last night?" Fred really did know how to annoy him in the worst way.

"I'd really rather not talk about it."

"Where did you go last night, George?" Harry Potter, the boy-who-didn't-know-when-to-take-a-hint, spoke up for the first time.

"Nowhe—" His denial was quickly cut off by the less handsome twin.

"Mione's." And there it was. The metaphorical ball had dropped. Ron sputtered as he choked on what looked to be an entire pancake he had shoved into his mouth; Harry's attention had snapped up to him so fast that his glasses had slid off his nose and into the syrupy remains of his own breakfast, and Fred just sat back looking smug and shooting random looks between the three other occupants of the room, gauging their reactions. Harry was the first to recover as he cleaned off his glasses and stuck them back on his nose.

"What did you do there, George?" It wasn't a secret that they were friends, but they never got together alone, as far as anyone else knows. Harry truly expected the best possible answer, knowing that even a Weasley twin wouldn't take advantage of a woman, especially a friend. By now Ron had stopped choking and was wearing an enraged expression as he waited for his brother's answer.

"We talked." That wasn't entirely a lie. They said a few sentences to each other.

"What about, Georgie?" Fred was enjoying this far too much, and George swiftly ran through the many ways he could kill his twin before deciding to just answer the question. _Best to do it quick, like ripping off a plaster._

"Not much. Mostly we just... comforted each other." _Please let Ron be as big of an idiot as I think he is! Please keep Fred's big mouth shut!_ George wasn't really sure who he was begging those things for, but it didn't matter as apparently Fred was going to drop the conversation for now and Ron just nodded and went back to eating. Unfortunately, the boy-who-had-a-death-wish caught on immediately.

"Comforted each other how, George?" The knowing glint in the boy-who-they-really-should-stop-inviting-over's eye was enough to make George stand up from the table and take his plate to the sink while he tried to think up a quick response.

That was when Ron miraculously grew a brain.

"You're shagging Mione?" Did he really have to sound so horrified? Like he couldn't even imagine anything worse; not even licking the bottom of Charlie's work boots, or mum divorcing dad to run off with Grawp and live out her days in the Forbidden Forest? Well, it was time to come clean to the two people that meant most in Hermione's life outside of her family- and Ginny of course.

"No. Why would you think that?" _Smooth._ This caused a snort from Fred but he somehow managed to hold in the full blown laughter George knew was bubbling just beneath the surface.

"You just said that you 'comforted each other'. What else could that mean?" Ron's anger was not abating at all. Maybe it was time to try a different tactic.

"Why would she want me when she could have you, little brother?" The sarcasm rolled right off of Ron's ears just like George had hoped; until Fred once again decided to try and liven up the situation.

"That's right, Ronniekins. What on Earth could George possibly have that you don't?" As Ron seemed to calm down, Fred continued. "I mean, he's only smarter, better looking- not than me, of course, but we are comparing him to you-, and has a much more laid back personality so that she wouldn't have to worry about shouting matches every few minutes. But you're right, Ron, you are a _much_ better catch." Even the boy-who-should-really-learn-when-to-shut-up snorted at Fred's obvious sarcasm.

"He's got you there, mate!" _Thank you__, Potter._ Ron turned very red at this statement from his best friend. Apparently no one thought that Ron and Hermione made a good couple-that's reassuring. _Wait...What?_

"She would choose me over you any day! I remember she used to yell at you guys all the time in school for testing products on first years. There's no way she's ever stepped foot near a bed with you in it." Ron calmed down after this miniscule burst of pseudo-intelligence and the other three decided to drop the issue at the risk of giving Ron a coronary. All three of them were thinking how glad they were that Ron was so stubborn; one of the three was wondering how Ron would react if the 'fuck-buddy' relationship ever turned into anything more.

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	3. Chapter 3

_Thanks to those who have reviewed, favorited the story, or alerted the story. Special Thanks to my awesome beta: ravenclawlove. You rock, girl!_

Hermione and Ginny apparated to an alley near a dress shop in muggle London. The two had been there before when they had been looking for a dress for Ginny's first date with her now fiancé, Blaise Zabini. When they walked in, they quickly separated, it was unspoken that they would both find some dresses that they liked and meet back at the dressing rooms for Hermione to try them all on. Hermione drifted to the elegant, floor-length dresses while Ginny wandered over to the section where the short, bright-colored dresses were.

Fifteen minutes later, the two met back at the dressing rooms. Hermione had two dresses in her arms; Ginny had eight piled in hers. A dressing attendant quickly came over to assist the girls and before she knew what was happening, Hermione was shoved into the nearest stall with the first dress-one of the ones that she had chosen.

Hermione stepped out in the midnight blue satin gown and Ginny just glared at the bottom of it. When Hermione tried to look down and see if there was toilet paper stuck to her shoe or something, Ginny shook her head quickly.

"You have fantastic legs, Mione! You should show them!" It was such an honest, Ginny-like statement that Hermione immediately agreed. It didn't have anything to do with the fact that George had said on more than one occasion that he found her legs incredibly sexy. The two were looking for two dresses actually. One for her date tonight, and one for the upcoming Ministry Ball. _BLEH!_ She stepped back into the cubicle and switched the dress for a shorter one.

Stepping out this time, she heard her best girlfriend giggle. She looked down at what she had on and just groaned. She had on a poofy, bright yellow dress with fire-engine red dolphins embroidered all around it that went to about mid-thigh. Apparently Ginny had found it funny to trick her friend into such an atrocious ensemble. Rolling her eyes and spinning on her heel, she walked back into the room and switched the vile garment out for a different dress.

This time when Hermione stepped out, she heard several gasps. Immediately drawn to see Ginny's facial expression, her head jerked up to observe her friend's reaction. Ginny looked like the Queen Mum had just walked in the shop and she was standing right behind her. When she turned around to see if there was indeed someone just behind her that caused the intense reaction, which she had just realized spread to several other shoppers and the few staff that were there on the Saturday morning, she caught sight of herself in the floor-length mirror behind her.

She was wearing a black, spaghetti-strapped, form-fitting dress trimmed entirely in dark red ribbon that fell to about mid-thigh. It looked perfect on her. The dark color of the dress offset her skin tone beautifully and she knew that she had the perfect pair of black velvet stilettos to match. She could really rock this dress. And she was definitely buying it. The only problem now was if she was going to wear it on her date that night, or was she going to wear it to the Ministry Ball-_where George would see it._ _No! Not going there!_

"If you don't buy that dress, I will seriously disown you as my sister." Ginny looked like her face was permanently etched in awe.

"I'm getting the dress, Gin. I was just trying to decide if I wanted it for my date or the Ball." Hermione slowly made her way back to the tiny room she had been changing in and switched out the dress again. Only this time, she took the black dress out with her and handed it to Ginny before stepping back to be scrutinized once again. The dress she had on this time was a bright magenta halter top that fell to her knees and had enough sparkle to that caused Hermione's eyes to sparkle as well.

"George would love that dress on you, Mione." That simple, whispered statement caused Hermione to blush red enough to match her best friend's hair. Of course Ginny knew about George. She also knew about all of the feelings that came with that one quiet sentence. She swallowed thickly and walked back to change again. She wasn't going as George's date. She had no reason to think of him while trying on dresses. They weren't dating or anything. "Mione! Get the dress! Knock his socks off!" Ginny was grinning devilishly- the same smile that matched the twin hooligans that were her brothers.

Slipping into the changing room, Hermione took off the dress and pulled on one that was made of bronze silk that fell mid-calf. She felt elegant in the dress. She would wear it for the Ministry function that she was forced to be part of within the next few weeks. Not for the first time, she cursed Kingsley Shacklebolt, current Minister for Magic, for cornering her in her office that day and guilting her into helping to organize the grand event in commemoration of five Voldemort-free years. She, Ron, and Harry would be expected to make speeches-_again_-and they would probably start the dancing-_again_-and maybe even persuade others to make toasts or speeches of their own-_again_... It really did get old pretty fast, considering how they had to do the same routine every year.

Hermione stepped out to show Ginny her dress. Her friend claimed to like it but it was admitted with much less enthusiasm now that she had refused to buy the dress that they both knew would impress George. Hermione bought the dresses and the two friends walked in silence two blocks down to get shoes for the bronze dress and jewelry for both of them. It didn't take long to find a strand of chocolate pearls that was so long that it would need to double looped, and even then it would still dangle to her navel. They found matching earrings and a killer pair of bronze stilettos with a six-inch spike heel. Deciding that her grandmother's diamond and ruby earrings and necklace would look great with the black dress, the two found an alley so they could apparate to Hermione's apartment to drop off all her purchases before meeting the guys for lunch.

Depositing her purchases on her bed, Hemione made to turn around and leave when she spotted Ginny's sour look. Rolling her eyes she quickly put everything away. A quick glance at her friend showed a satisfied expression-apparently she was expecting her to get laid tonight-_truly a laughable thought._

Before the two walked out into the living room, she contemplated her 'relationship'-_definitely not the right term_- with George. She had honestly only expected a one-off the day that she propositioned him in his shop. It quickly became something more though. Now, they were shagging on a fairly regular basis, and on top of that they talked through their problems like they were some sort of couple, even though she knew deep down that George truly thought that was something that friends do for one another-and he would be right. So when did it become more for her? Easy: about two and a half weeks in, when she didn't want him to leave after he had fucked her into her mattress; but that was the problem, and the reason why she was forcing herself to date guys that she had no interest in-she needed to push George away. She should tell him her decision next time she was alone with him. Somewhere along the lines, she had lost her heart to George Weasley and there was no turning back from that. It was time to simply forget before she hurt herself more.

"Oh no, Mione! We're late! Come on!" Ginny had looked at the clock on the wall near the fireplace: 12:25. The two each grabbed a handful of floo powder and one after the other catapulted themselves into the green flames and out into the Leaky Cauldron where the guys were sitting in the back corner, each with drinks sitting in front of them. The two girls apologized and squeezed themselves into the booth. Hermione snatched George's firewhiskey from him and knocked it back in one go. Fred looked mildly surprised but everyone else didn't see it as anything unusual about the action.

"Whoa, Mione! Slow down, it's barely noon!" Fred joked to cover his shock.

"I'm sorry, George. I'll get you another one. I just really hate shopping for clothes, it's such a pain." Hermione jumped back up and began her trek to the bar. "Does anyone else want anything?" No one spoke up so she continued walking to the bar.

"I'll come with you, Mione." Ginny followed her friend but waited until they were out of earshot and had ordered their drinks to say anything. "Are you okay?"

"Not really. But I'm hoping that my date tomorrow will make me feel a bit better." There really was no use lying to Ginny, she could tell and she had some very Slytherin-like ways to get the truth out of you.

"Is there something going on between you and George?" _Stupid question_. "I mean more than usual?" Ginny was quick to catch the slip of her tongue.

"No, Ginny. You know how I feel about him and how he would never reciprocate my feelings. It's time I stopped this _thing_ with him and started dating again. I haven't gone on a date since we started hooking up." Ginny knew all of this but really hated to see her friend sad and she knew that her brother would not be happy with the new arrangement. While the two were leaning against the bar waiting for Tom the barkeep to fill their drink orders, they both seemed to feel a presence right behind them at the same time. Turning slowly the two came face to face with the two Slytherin sex gods from their time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry: Blaise Zabini and Draco Malfoy.

"I've missed you,_ cara_." Blaise leaned down to kiss his fiance softly on the lips before standing back up to his full height. The other couple standing next to them hadn't noticed this exchange at all however, as they were currently checking each other out. This was the first time that they had seen each other since the war and the changes to both parties were quite dramatic. Hermione had gained weight at her hips and breasts and her hair had even tamed into beautiful soft curls instead of the unruly mess it was before. Draco had filled out with muscle and no longer looked pale and withdrawn. He also stood straight and proud at 6'3", nothing like the boy he was during the war.

"Granger."

"Malfoy." Ginny and Blaise shared a smile at their reaction to each other.

"You both should join us, we're here with the boys." As Ginny said this, both Blaise and Draco stiffened. Draco didn't really want to see the-boy-who-wouldn't-die and Blaise had noticed that half of his fiance's brothers were included in that statement. No, neither would willingly join the two women in front of them.

"What's going on here?"

_'cara' is an Italian term of endearment, like the American dear or honey._

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	4. Chapter 4

_Thanks to all that have read, reviewed, favorited, or alerted! Many, many thanks to the one-and-only ravenclawlove for being such a wonderful beta!_

—

"What's going on here?" The voice belonged to none other than the world renowned side-kick: Ron Weasley.

"Ronald, behave." Hermione was quick to admonish Ron's behavior.

"Mione, you're standing here with the king snake himself. Why, in Merlin's name, would you do that on purpose?" Ron was apparently going for thick headed git today.

"Who I do or do not speak to is none of your concern, Ronald! It hasn't been your concern for six months! I'm not your property!" Hermione marched over to the bar where their drinks were sitting and threw back another shot of firewhiskey. She turned around just in time to catch the shocked expressions on Draco's and Blaise's faces. She walked past them all to the fireplace, grabbed a handful of floo powder, and tossed the powder while calling out her address. "Thanks, Gin. See you at seven, Malfoy." She was gone.

"Way to go, you great lump! You just don't know when to shut your mouth, do you?" Ginny growled out as Blaise easily held her back from attacking her ever-reddening brother.

"Oh come on, Gin! She's just being dramatic!" There was apparently no way that Ron Weasley was wrong in his rudeness.

"Did she say that she was going to see Malfoy at seven?" This was the first thing heard from the-boy-who-was-slow-to-catch-up.

"Yeah. They're going on a date tonight. Blaise and I set them up." Ginny seemed quite pleased with herself. George had to steel himself at this; it was bad enough that she was going on a date tonight, but she was going with the ferret who had made her life hell all through school. He opted not to say anything and go for nonchalance.

"That's not even right! Why would Mione want to go out with the ferret?" At this point, even Harry wanted Ron to shut up.

"Watch it, Weasley." This came from Blaise, Draco had yet to respond to any of the animosity towards him. _Maybe he's really grown up._

"You watch it, Zabini! You still need my say to marry my sister!" This was so far out of left field that Fred, George, Harry, Ginny, Blaise, and Draco all burst out laughing- well, Blaise and Draco smirked while the rest of them burst out laughing.

"You really are delusional, Ron!" Ginny could hardly breathe from laughing so hard. Ron's entire face, ears, and neck were all an almost purplish shade of red.

"Come on, mate. Let's get out of here." Harry was still grinning but decided to take pity on Ron and get him away from the two Slytherins. Ron just nodded dumbly and followed his best mate out of the Leaky Cauldron and into Diagon Alley to the nearest aparation point. Fred and George made their discreet exit too. They knew Ginny would be fine, she was marrying one of the two men that they had left her with. Ginny, noticing her brothers and friend making their exits, turned to her future husband and his best friend.

"What are you planning to do with Mione tonight, Malfoy?" Interest sparkled in the small red head's eyes.

"A club I own. You two are welcome to join us. It might even make Granger feel more comfortable about going out with me." Ginny looked pleasantly surprised at this statement.

"That's really thoughtful, Malfoy. We'd love to go!" Ginny had no problems making plans for both herself and the Zabini heir.

"Yeah, mate. We'll make sure you're in her good graces by the end of the night." Blaise knew that his friend had always been curious about the muggle born witch.

"What kind of club do you own, Malfoy?" Ginny was trying to be polite, but she was also nervous that it might be some kind of stuffy pureblood-only place that would make her best girlfriend uncomfortable in some way.

"It's actually primarily a muggle club. It has a large dance floor and drinks that cater to both muggle or magical persons." His answer surprised Ginny, but definitely in a good way. It showed that Draco Malfoy was truly changed from how he was when they were all in school together. Blaise chuckled quietly from behind his fiance and leaned in to whisper into her ear.

"He owns _La Tentatrice Scura, cara._" Ginny gasped in recognicion of the most popular night club in London. She had always wanted to go but figured she'd never get in because it was so famous. She and Hermione tried to go for dancing and drinks together once a month and had honestly never bothered with that particularly daunting club.

"I have to go!" Ginny pulled away from Blaise and all but ran to the fireplace. She tossed in a handful of powder and disapeared in a swirl of green flames. She reapeared in Hermione's flat. "Mione!" Her friend's voice came from the kitchen and Ginny sped off down the hallway. "Mione! We have to get ready for tonight!"

"What's going on, Gin? What do you mean 'we'?" Hermione was trying to catch on to the conversation but was sorely confused.

"Draco invited Blaise and me to go with you guys tonight! I'm so excited! He's taking us to _La Tentatrice Scura!_" Ginny was breathing hard from her excitement, her eyes lit up in a wicked way.

"Really? He knows about that place?" It was pretty difficult to get your mind around the fact that Draco Malfoy knew of a muggle dance club.

"He owns it." Those three little words from Ginny changed Hermione's entire opinion of the one spoiled, self-centered brat.

"Wow." That was the most articulate thing that the brightest witch of the age could think of when faced with something as intense as a change in the way that she viewed someone that she had known since she was eleven. So, why did she agree to go on a date with him in the first place? Because Ginny had a compulsive need to set her up on dates all of the time, trying to make her happy with the right guy, trying to help her remember that George was only supposed to be a distraction, a relief, trying to make her see that she had no future with the man she had been sleeping with for the past six months. She meant well, but up until that moment Draco Malfoy was the furthest person on her mind for any sort of relationship; be that casual dating, aquaintaces, or something more. Wordlessly following Ginny to her room to get dressed, she didn't manage to tune out all of her idle chatter.

"...and this is such a good thing, Mione! You and George having sex all the time isn't healthy! Not when neither of you want anything permanent! Well, not when he's not interested in anything permanent. He probably wouldn't have any trouble at all moving on to the next casual fuck..." Hermione didn't know whether to be offended or not. She was forgettable? Or George just didn't ever take anything seriously? Probably both. Did Ginny even realize what she said? Tuning back in as she pulled her dress from the the garment bag it was in from the shop they bought it at earlier, she realized that there was no way Ginny even knew what she was saying as she bounced from topic to topic. "... that's when I realized that Ron was back with Lavender; although I'm not sure she even knew about Parvati, but they are very open in their 'relationship'. Maybe they're all doing each other? I don't know! There's no way that will ever last, he got annoyed with Lavender before, he'll be annoyed again in no time. I bet she's pregnant! That's got to be why she..." Did she ever breathe? They had just spent the whole morning shopping and talking, and yet the girl still wanted to babble on nonsensically about other people's lives.

Maybe she should listen in while she got dressed and ready for tonight. Ginny was bound to spill something useful about how she should react to her and Draco's date tonight, even if she didn't even know she was doing it.

—

_cara: an Italian term of enderament synonymus with the American 'dear' or 'honey'_

_La Tentatrice Scura: The Dark Temptress_

_Please review._


	5. Chapter 5

George was grateful that Fred didn't make any comments about what had just happened at the Leaky. It had been rough finding out that Mione was going on a date with the ferret, and he was none too happy that she hadn't at least warned him ahead of time. _Maybe she's ashamed that she agreed to go out with him in the first place._ That thought immediately made George feel a little better. The twins walked into their shop and smiled identically at the chaos that they worked so hard to create. Verity, their shop assistant, was on the register ringing out some customers, and Lee Jordan, a friend from school that had a stake in the shop and occasionally came in to help, was currently trying to catch an escaped pygmy puff while simultaneously sweeping up what appeared to be a broken bottle of love potion, and stop a little boy from trying to get into the 'adults only' portion of the shop.

Fred walked over to stop the boy while George talked a group of teenage girls through their wonder-witch line. The girls kept stopping to giggle every time he would throw them a Weasley twin smirk or a wink. The entire group walked out with bag-loads of products. He loved his job.

"Hey, Georgie! Meet me in the back room!" Fred's voice could easily be heard over the noise that all the little blighters made; as well as the whirring of a few Weasley's Wildfire Wizbangs, as well as various other bells and whistles. George picked his way through some customers and finally managed to make it to the store room. That was the room that they kept all their research, did their entire product making and testing; and apparently held impromptu meetings.

"What's up, Freddie?" George asked as he closed the door behind himself and walked through some stacks of boxes to reach the very back of the room. He pulled up an empty crate and sat down beside his brother.

"What just happened?" Fred's vague question had George raising an eyebrow.

"I just did what we always do. I flirted with some customers and they bought a ton of stuff; works every time." George was confused as to why Fred seemed upset by this.

"No, you git! I mean with Mione. What just happened back there?" George wasn't entirely sure himself so it took him a few moments of complete silence to answer the question.

"Well, I'm not sure, but it looked like Mione isn't interested in me outside of being a fuck buddy, and she seems to be trying to replace even that title with someone else." George knew that wasn't a fair statement but he was surprisingly hurt that she wouldn't even tell him who she was going on a date with; not that he had any right to be upset about it.

"Okay, that isn't quite what I meant." Fred seemed hesitant to continue, but he is a Weasley twin, and so he persevered. "You didn't react, Georgie! I know you like her and want her as more than a friend, so why didn't you say anything to her?" Did he want her as more than a friend? _Of course!_ They already were more than friends. Did he want her as his girlfriend, so they didn't have to hide what they were doing from everyone? _Perhaps._

"What makes you think I want anything more than what we already have going for us?" George knew that his twin knew him better than he knew himself sometimes so really wasn't surprised by the awkward questions.

"George, fuck it, you know why I'm asking. It's because when she isn't at the flat, you wander around aimlessly and you always talk about her! All the time!" Fred was extremely exasperated with his twin at the moment.

"Well, how would you feel if Ange didn't want to date you, but only wanted to fuck? You had no hope for a real relationship with her, and your only options were to drop your pants when she snapped her fingers or completely let her go?" George knew that Fred wouldn't understand even with the rhetorical question thrown in for good measure.

"George, it's not the same and you know it. Ange and I were dating before we started having sex, you and Mione weren't. You were only ever supposed to be temporary fuck buddies." Fred was sad for George, he really was, he wanted to help him through what he knew was going to hurt him.

George thought about what Fred had said for a few minutes. He was right about everything. It was only ever supposed to be temporary, and it was him who grew more attached than they agreed that either of them would. He really did only have two options at this point: he could pretend that he didn't have any feelings beyond friendship for Hermione and continue with the casual sex that was quickly becoming not-so-casual for him, or he could break it off now before he got in any deeper emotionally. The best answer would be to just tell her that he didn't think it would be a good idea to continue, but not tell her exactly why, even if she asked.

He was really contemplating everything that they had been through since that day six months ago. They had really grown closer as friends if nothing else, all the late night talks over tea, they had really gotten to know one another better than anyone else ever had. Even Harry didn't know as many intimate details about Hermione Granger as he did, and not even Fred knew all of his thoughts like she seemed to, often before even he knew what he was thinking. It was almost unnerving really, how she just knew what was wrong with him before he had to say anything.

"I think I'm too attached to her, Freddie. I think I'm falling for her." George hadn't even fully admitted it to himself yet, and here he was admitting it to his brother.

"Then you need to tell her that, Georgie." Fred said this slowly, like he was talking to someone with brain damage. "Or I could have Ron do it." And just like that the somber mood between the two lifted.

"Oi! Not funny, brother 'o' mine! I could just as easily have Percy admit his undying feelings for Ange. I'm sure she'd drop you for him faster than you can say 'Qudditch'!" The two laughed heartily at the imagery this presented-and the impossibility it brought to mind. The twins emerged from the store room grinning and laughing amicably. No one paid them any mind as they walked up behind Verity and "accidentally" screwed open the cap on her water bottle, dropped a small vile of brackish liquid in, and sealed it up while continuing to look much too innocent for their own good.

Twenty minutes later, Verity asked if she could take a quick restroom break. Lee stared at her with wide eyes while George just waved her off and took her spot behind the register. A loud, startled shriek could be heard down half of Diagon Alley originating from the small water closet located on the ground floor of Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. A disgruntled Verity stomped out of the restroom and glared in turn at the now snickering Weasley twins.

"What did you do and how long will it last?" After being pranked about once a week since she had been working there, she no longer got mad or upset about all of the practical jokes played on her: she just got very annoyed and plotted quiet revenge.

"Giant Squid ink," Fred started.

"You don't want to know how we got that," George continued.

"We were thinking about using some in the bubbles that cause temporary color splashes when they come into contact with skin." Fred easily rattled off some semblance of an answer to their long-time employee; even if it was a total lie.

"We aren't exactly sure how 'temporary' it is though. May last a few minutes, may be a few days." George picked up the worst part of the news.

"Technically, it's not supposed to be consumed," Fred completed the dialogue. Grinning madly, they wait for the screech of fury-

"_Grahhhhhh!"_ Didn't have to wait long on it that time... _I suppose nobody really wants to walk around with bright green skin for an undetermined amount of time._


	6. Chapter 6

_Special Thanks to all that have reviewed, alerted, or favorited this story. Many praises to my beta __ravenclawlove_._ You rock, girl!_

Hermione and Ginny were in Hermione's apartment getting ready for their dates that night. Hermione had her hair pulled back half way, all of it done in beautiful ringlet curls with hardly any make-up adorning her face. Ginny, on the other hand, had her hair straight and up in a high ponytail with enough make-up to make a clown jealous.

They heard the floo activate and both slipped their absurdly high heels on before leaving Hermione's room. Hermione in her black dress with black satin stilletos, and Ginny in her turquoise dress with strappy white heels. The two looked fantastic when they stood together, their beauty easily playing off one another.

Stepping into the living room, Hermione's eyes caught Draco's. He had been leaning against her desk and straightened immediately upon seeing her enter the room. _She cleans up pretty good. _She smiled at him and he smirked back; a smirk being the closest thing to a smile that a Malfoy actually can force their facial muscles into.

"You look beautiful,_ cara._" Blaise's soft comment snapped the two former enemies out of whatever trance they were in.

"Is everyone ready?" Draco asked, taking a step closer to Hermione and guiding her toward the floo with a hand at the small of her back.

"I have everything. What about you, Gin?" The latter part was directed to the red-head currently snogging the Italian in the doorway. Draco cleared his throat in the most dignified, Malfoy-like way possible, causing the two to pull back from one another slightly and smile into each others' eyes. Draco rolled his eyes, grabbed a handful of floo powder from the container on Hermione's mantle, and shouted '_La Tentatrice Scura' _before disappearing in a flash of green flames. The other three followed, and soon they all found themselves in a private room with a wall of windows overlooking a dance floor on one side, a desk in the back, and a bar near the front.

"What would you like?" Draco approached the bar and was once again followed by the room's other three occupants.

"I'd like an East India Company Punch," Hermione kept looking back at the dance floor through the window.

"Yeah, like I have tea up here, Granger." Draco snorted. "What would you really like?" He seemed to be digging around in his bar for something.

"Umm... I guess firewhiskey."

"Zabini? Weaslette?" Draco didn't even bother to look up as he was pouring Hermione two fingers of the amber liquid.

"Same for both of us," Ginny answered.

Once all four of them had glasses of firewhiskey in their possession, they all went to stand by the window and observe the patrons dancing below. A thick silence descended upon the small group. A minute or two went by before Blaise decided to break awkward moment.

"Hermione, do you have any idea what the minister has planned for the upcoming ball?"

"I don't know, Blaise. The same exact thing as the last four years?" The sarcasm was beyond thick in her voice as she rolled her eyes.

"Oh, so rambling speeches, free drinks, and cheap shags in the bathroom?" Draco simply _had_ to add his commentary.

"Draco, last year we found you propositioning a house plant in the corner," Blaise smirked. While Hermione had the decency to cover her laughter with a polite cough, Ginny guffawed so hard that she choked on her drink and Blaise started smacking her back to try to clear her airway. This caused Hermione to laugh loudly at her best friend's expense.

"Alright, Gin?" Hermione managed to gasp out between her dying giggles.

"I'm fine. A house plant, Draco? Really?" Ginny started laughing anew, Hermione joining in.

"If you two are quite finished, why don't you run along downstairs for a bit while Zabini and I have a talk?" Even if it was said as a question, it was obviously not meant as such. Hermione raised an eyebrow at the obvious order, but decided against arguing for the night. After Ginny gave Blaise a quick peck on the cheek, the two girls set their drinks down on the desk as they walked to the steps, trekking down toward the club below. The men stood at the window, watching the people below for a few moments, before engaging in business talk.

"How's the profit margin for this quarter, Draco?"

"Up twelve percent, thinking about maybe opening up another club somewhere else in the city."

"Any ideas where?"

"Not really. We should look into that soon," Draco said, walking over to the bar to refill his drink. He pointed to the firewhiskey, raising an eyebrow in question. Blaise nodded and held out his own glass to be filled once again. The two walked back over to the window, gazing down at the people once again.

Their gazes were immediately drawn to the center of the dance floor, where two women were the object of desire for almost every male in sight. One had long, straight fire-red hair up in a ponytail, the other had elegant, deep-brown curls swinging around their bodies as they danced. Neither of the women seemed to notice all of the eyes that were on them, or that even Blaise and Draco could see from their office up above.

"Granger's actually got a nice body," Draco absentmindedly spoke aloud.

"You sound surprised about that," Blaise's impatience with his friend was thinly veiled.

"Well, Blaise, I mean, come on. It's Granger we're talking about." Draco cocked a brow at the Italian with a slight smirk.

"Yes, Granger, my future wife's best friend," the warning tone in Blaise's voice wasn't lost on Draco.

"Well, it's not like I don't like muggleborns, Blaise. You know that," Draco back-pedaled quickly.

"Yeah, yeah. I know, Drake," Blaise sighed and rolled his eyes. The two stood in companionable silence for awhile before the door behind them opened and in stumbled two laughing women. Hermione and Ginny walked across the room and stopped at the window, both with wide grins and flushed faces from all of the dancing they had just done. Blaise smiled softly at the red head and wrapped his arm around her waist. This gesture went unnoticed by the other two occupants in the room who were stealing covert glances at one another when they thought the other wasn't looking.

Hermione glanced at Draco out of the corner of her eye, but looked away quickly when he caught her eye and smirked. The four stood quietly for a few more moments before Blaise once again broke the silence.

The four adults talked companionably for a couple of hours; the girls wandering down to dance two more times, the guys watching both times. The firewhiskey flowed freely the entire time, no one quite sure how much they had to drink.

"What do you ladies say we call it a night?" Hermione and Ginny nodded in agreement while Draco set his glass down on the windowsill and turned to his desk to dig out a small container of floo powder. After the girls said their good-byes and the men nodded to one another, Ginny and Blaise disappeared to Blaise's townhouse in wizarding Britain. Hermione turned to look at Draco and gave him a calculating glance.

"Would you like to come back to mine for tea?" Draco considered the question briefly before nodding with a smirk. This caused Hermione to smile shyly as she stepped toward the fireplace and disappeared in a flash of green flames.

Draco's smirk widened as he followed the brunette into the swirling floo network. _He was definitely getting some tonight._

_cara: an Italian term of endearment similar to the American 'dear'_

_La Tentatrice Scura: 'The Dark Temptress'_

_Please review or I may not continue the story. I haven't really had much good feedback._


	7. Chapter 7

_Thank you so much to everyone for reviewing, favoriting, or alerting this story; you've all really made me smile! Also, special thanks to ravenclawlove for being, by far, the best beta I've ever had! You rock, girl!_

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><p>George Weasley, master prankster, sexier Weasley twin, and the favorite child of the aforementioned family, was staring blindly into the fireplace of his and Fred's flat. He had a bottle of firewhiskey in his hand that was already half empty. <em>At this rate, that girl is going to turn me into a drunk.<em> His musings were cut short when his other half walked out from the room in which he had previously been shagging his girlfriend, Angelina. He didn't say a word as Fred stalked into the kitchen and banged around some glasses in the cabinet to the right of the sink. Once he found what he was apparently looking for, he walked over and took a seat in the arm chair next to the couch George was sitting on.

Still not saying a word, Fred reached over and extracted the bottle from his brother. He proceeded to pour a small amount of the liquid into the two glasses that he had just brought in from the kitchen. Handing one to George, he took a large gulp of his own glass, turning his body to stare blankly into the fire as well. After about ten minutes of the same thing, George finally looked over at Fred, knowing exactly what he was doing: trying to get him to open up. With a sigh, George started talking quietly.

"I love the way her hair curls and gets tangled around my hands whenever I wrap them up in it. I love the way that she just knows exactly what I need. I love the way my pillow smells after she's been over. I love the way her body reacts to every slight touch," George trailed off, seemingly lost in thought. Fred patiently waited for him to finish, knowing that he wasn't finished. "I don't love her though. She's beautiful, yeah, but I can get over her."

"Are you sure about all that, Georgie? Sounds to me like you already miss her and nothing has changed. Not really." Fred spoke just as quietly as George had been.

"But everything _has_ changed, Fred! Don't you see?" George's desperation crept into his voice. "She's already moving on, but I'm not sure I can move on just like that! It wasn't supposed to be like this." His voice was quiet at the end. The two brothers sat in silence a bit longer before Fred turned a cheeky grin his way.

"Are you giving her up to the ferret?" This startled George.

"No, I'm not giving her up to anyone. She makes her own choices." _Yeah, that sounds like something Hermione would say._

"Maybe you need to be the knight with lustrous arm hair, or something like that, and rescue the damsel in distress. Make her decision for her! Make her choose you!" At this point, Fred was standing on the coffee table in the middle of the room, brandishing an imaginary sword at the chair he had just been occupying the minute before.

"If only it was that simple, brother mine." George sighed.

"Georgie, get your lazy arse in that fireplace and go talk to her!" Fred jumped down from the coffee table and pulled George to his feet, giving him a shove. "She'll never know if you don't say anything!"

"Okay, Freddie. But if she doesn't want to give it a go, you have to drop this nonsense." George waited for Fred to nod his consent before grabbing a handful of floo powder off of the mantle and tossing it in the flames. Just like that, George was hurdling through the floo network at a break-neck speed. He stepped out in the living room of Hermione's little two bedroom apartment. He halted for a moment, listening for any sign of life. He slowly walked through to the kitchen and the sight before him had him raising his eyebrows.

At the small table in the kitchen, Draco Malfoy sat drinking tea delicately with his pinky out while Hermione bustled around in the cupboards. George must have snorted at the scene before him, because Hermione's head whipped around to look directly at him. She seemed surprised but quickly regained her composure. She turned to Draco to excuse herself before taking his hand and leading him back into her bedroom for privacy.

"What's wrong, George?" She knew that George would never interrupt her date unless something was really bothering him. She waved her hand, both wordlessly and wandlessly warding and silencing the door. Her concern for George quickly overrode any politeness she should have shown Draco.

"Uh, did you and ferret, you know?" George was embarrassed by his own _eloquent_ speaking skills. "What I mean is, uh, you two are, well, um, did you?" Rolling his eyes, George all but yelled, "You're drinking tea!"

"Uh, George, are you feeling okay? It's just tea. You and I drink—"her face lit up in shock, having just understood what George was trying to stutter through. After her shock wore off, her face softened into a gentle smile. "It really is just tea, George. I was going to send him home soon." George turned as red as his hair; he rubbed the back of his neck with one hand while trying to look anywhere but her.

"I guess I'll just, umm, go then," George managed to stammer out. He turned to leave but realized that he'd have to wait for Hermione to drop the spells on her door. She hesitated for a minute before clearing her throat quietly.

"Is that all you wanted to talk about, George? I mean, I'm sure you came over here for something." George still had his back to her so he missed the hopeful look in her eye.

"Well, gee, Granger! Are you propositioning me?" He turned around with a twinkle in his eye, smiling at the woman before him. She let out a tinkling laugh, put her arm through his, dropped the wards, and led him out into the kitchen. The two walked in with their arms intertwined and laughing. Draco was still sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of tea in his hands. He looked up and saw the couple laughing at something or another that Weasley had said.

"I need to go, Granger. I'll see you around." Draco stood and made his way to the living room before she even had a chance to respond. Throwing an apologetic smile at George, she dropped his arm, gestured for him to help himself to tea, and followed Draco.

"Draco?" Her voice even sounded timid to her own ears.

"I'll see you around, Granger." Draco grabbed a handful of floo powder off of the mantle, preparing to toss it into the flames.

"Thanks for tonight, Malfoy." She flashed a smile at the blond, which he returned with a smirk.

"No problem, Granger." Then he was gone. Hermione sighed and mentally shrugged her shoulders. _Oh, well. Maybe the next guy will make it more than one date in..._ She walked back into the kitchen where George was leaning against the counter with a cup of tea in his hand. He looked sort of nervous, like he was afraid she was going to yell at him.

"Sorry, Mione." George was rubbing the back of his neck again, like he always does when he's nervous about something. The fact that she knew this struck a chord within her; she was falling in love with all of the little things he did, from the way he rubbed the back of his neck like that, to the loopy smile after they both came during a particularly heavy round of sex. She knew that he would never feel for her the way she did for him. She couldn't help imagining what is would be like if he stayed over one of these nights. She must have been quiet too long, because George was staring right at her, trying to get her attention. "Mione? I'm really sorry."

"It's okay, George." She gave him a soft smile and turned to go back to her room. She decided she wanted to change out of the dress she was in as it reminded her of Malfoy and right now she wanted to talk to George without her failed date hanging over them as well. She didn't bother closing the door, it's not like George hadn't seen everything before anyhow. The black dress that she had so loved earlier that night was quickly stripped and tossed over the bed, landing in a heap on the floor. She stood there with her back to the door, in just bright magenta lace knickers and matching bra, still in her stilettos, having not yet taken them off. Her hands slid to rest on her hips as she debated whether or not to see if George was up for a quick fuck. _Maybe I'll just slide on some sweats and see if I can get him to talk to me._ She had no sooner had this thought when she heard light cough at her door.

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><p><em>AN: School's started back up this week, so I will only be able to update on Thursdays and on the weekend. I also will probably not update unless I have at least a couple reviews just so I know that you all are still with me. Thanks again for sticking with me this long!_

_Please review!_


	8. Chapter 8

_A very special thank-you to ravenclawlove for being such an awesome beta. Thank-you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story; everytime I get a new email saying one or the other, I smile._

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><p>Without even looking, Hermione knew it was George standing in her doorway. She could somehow sense it was him in a way that astounded even herself... He was the only other one in the apartment. She slowly turned around to face him, taking in the look of longing that was briefly stamped across his features before he quickly hid it behind a look of appreciation.<p>

"Gods, Mione! You look beautiful!" She was pleased at his praise, and looked down with a flush, she didn't notice that he crossed the room in a flash, until he was already wrapping her in his strong arms.

Her scent was intoxicating. She smelled like lavender and vanilla. It was making George dizzy to be this close to the witch he desired more than any other. Since when did that happen? They weren't exactly exclusive. _Unfortunately._

It was such a pleasant sensation to be in his arms, but Hermione didn't let herself dwell on it for long as his lips descended upon hers. They kissed so passionately that she wasn't sure if her heart would ever be the same again after having the smallest taste of the pure passion she was experiencing with George. She could tell that this was so much different than anything else intimate they had ever shared, she just didn't know how; maybe she was just being hopeful. With that, her mind stopped working and she gave herself completely over to George's firm, yet somehow still soft, lips moving against hers.

George's hands were everywhere, rubbing up her thighs, down her arms, squeezing her breasts through the sexy bra in his favorite color that she must have bought just for him. She couldn't keep up with the sensations he was causing all through her body. A quiet moan escaped her mouth, just to be devoured by George's hungry lips against hers. Before she knew what had happened, he lifted her up by her thighs, forcing her to wrap her legs around his waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck for balance as he slowly walked them over to the bed, his lips now trailing across her jaw and down her neck, as he unsnapped and removed her bra. With her mouth free, she was groaning with the wonderful sensations that George was causing within her. He gently laid her down, following her back as his mouth closed over a now exposed nipple. Hermione moaned again as he suckled gently at her breast, his hand sliding down closer and closer to the one place that was aching for his touch.

His hand teasingly rubbed around her covered entrance as he continued to feast at her breasts, showering constant attention between the two perfect handfuls of flesh. He knew this was a whole other flavor than what they normally did, but he just couldn't bring himself to think about it past that. He turned his attention to the scrap of lacy fabric hiding his prize from him. Hermione groaned loudly as she felt him move her panties aside and slip just a fingertip inside of her. The easy passage caused him to groan as well.

"So fucking wet," George mumbled against her breasts as he slid down her body, pulling her knickers off as he went. Once his face was at the level of her pussy, he took in a deep breath through his nose: _she smells so _wonderful! After indulging in her scent, he ran the flat of his tongue from the back of her slit up to the small, hidden jewel in front of her hot cunt. This caused Hermione to cry out in surprised pleasure. George continued his ministrations, rubbing his tongue in circles around her clit, dipping it into her tight opening, and occasionally stopping to suckle on the sensitive bud of nerves. He slid a finger up inside of her, knowing she was getting close. Feeling her walls flutter around him, he took a long, hard suck, sending her over the edge with a loud moan of his name. He licked her gently a few times to sooth her as she came down from her high before sitting back to lay next to her on her bed.

She looked at him through hooded eyes as she quickly rolled to lay on top of him, straddling him in a bid to get her sensitive sex as close to his dick as possible. She kissed him with as much ferocity as she could muster as she ran her hands from his muscular stomach, up his muscular chest, taking his shirt off at the same time. She proceeded to run her small hands all over his pecks, reveling in the feel of him against her. She wiggled down his body so she could kiss his abs softly, slowing making her way up his body, stopping to deliver slight nips to his nipples. She found herself back up at his lips, and kissed him again with all she had in her. Her fingers were in the process of freeing George's obvious erection when he stopped her.

"No, Mia. Tonight was all about you." The use of _his_ nickname for her wasn't lost on her. She must have looked slightly taken aback because he smiled gently and pulled her close to his chest. She laid her head over his heart and he stroked her hair. He just held her as her brain whirred at a hundred miles an hour. She fretted about what she did that made him stop so suddenly just when things started to get good: _what if he didn't want her anymore and this was his way of calling it off._ She brushed off those horribly depressing thoughts in favor of snuggling against him instead. _Snuggling: that's new and scary. _She put all those thoughts on hold for now, she could always talk to Ginny tomorrow. It was probably time to end this thing with George anyway, she was already way too attached as it was. She forced herself to take a few cleansing breaths, and it wasn't long before her breathing slowed and evened out.

She was dozing in his arms, he was watching her with an undeniably tender expression stamped on his face. _She really is perfect. _He contemplated getting up and leaving, thinking she might just regret that come morning. Then again, she was full of surprises.

George laid how he was for awhile. He couldn't seem to get his mind around what had just happened. He didn't even know what to call what had just happened between them, let alone where they went from here. Was this just a one off? How could it possibly be a one off when they'd been fuck buddies for months? Everything was so confusing. The deal had been no strings attached. Figuring out that he had feelings for Hermione was definitely one hell of a string.

George managed to maneuver around to get his jeans off and pull the blanket up over them. For the first time in a long time, he actually felt at peace: with a woman in his arms that he never would have imagined himself with in the past. He drifted off to sleep with a smile on his face and the fresh scent of lavender and vanilla all around him.

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><p><em>AN: I have two new stories in the works: a Fred/Hermione/George story called 'Accidents Happen' and a Bill/Hermione story called 'The Appointment'. I won't start posting until I finish with this story, but you can leave your preference for which story I should next start in a review or private message. Please review!_


	9. Chapter 9

_Thanks to all who have reviewed, alerted, or favorited this story. A very, very, very big thanks to ravenclawlove for betaing this for me, and for being awesome in general. This chapter is shorter than normal, I apologize, but it really needed to end where it did. Read on!_

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><p>Hermione woke up really early the next morning. She stretched languidly, relishing the warm, fuzzy feeling she had in the pit of her stomach. What happened the night before rushed to the front of her mind, and the smile that had been on her lips when she woke up, disappeared. She knew that last night was different; she knew it while it happened. It was time to talk to George. They needed to work through whatever had just happened.<p>

Turning to her right, she quickly realized that George was no longer in bed with her. She mentally shrugged before rolling into a sitting position at the edge of the bed. Stretching once again, she stood, noticed that it was only about eight-fifteen, and made her way into her en suite bathroom.

George wasn't in there, so she decided on a shower. The warm mist felt wonderful against her skin. She ended up being in the shower for longer than she had planned to be; it was nine o'clock when she walked back into her bedroom to get dressed. She opted for a tight tank top and loose, drawstring sweatpants before walking out of her room and down the hall to the kitchen.

George wasn't in the kitchen either. She put water on for tea before looking around her small apartment for him. He wasn't in the spare bedroom, or the living room. He wasn't there. He must have left. For some reason, Hermione was saddened by that knowledge. She didn't have time to dwell on it however, as her tea kettle was whistling.

Once she had made her tea, she sat at the small table in her kitchen sipping at the hot, sweetened liquid, thinking about what last night could have meant. She relived every touch, every caress, every sensation that George caused within her. _What could it possibly have meant?_ She had liked George since before she had propositioned him six months ago. She hadn't ever held any delusions about them ever being together as a couple though; now she was starting to have hope.

It felt like they were connecting on an emotional level, instead of just a physical level. It felt like George cared about her, with his gentle touches and sweet words. _It felt like he might even lo-_

"Hermione Granger! Where are you?" The voice was coming from her living room, indicating that someone had obviously just arrived via floo, and she was so lost in thought that she hadn't even heard the floo activate. By the sound of it, it would seem whomever was in her house was upset about something. Hermione sighed before getting up and walking into her living room.

Ginny Weasley was standing in the middle of the room looking positively distraught. Hermione was immediately by her friend's side checking her over for injuries.

"Ginny! What happened?" Having not found anything, she took a step back to give her friend concerned looks from afar.

"Don't ask me what happened! How could you do that to George?" Ginny was upset about George?

"What about George? Is he okay? What happened?" Hermione was growing increasingly panicked by the second. Her stomach had dropped clear down to the floor in terror. _What happened to George?_

"Like you don't know! What did you do to him?" Ginny was calming down the more she realized that Hermione was upset that something had happened to George. "Didn't he come here last night?" Ginny was unsure now.

"Yeah. He was here," Hermione whispered, trying not to be upset that he left. Ginny knew how she felt, but George was still her brother.

"What happened?" Ginny pulled Hermione over to the couch, settled herself down next to her, and looked at her expectantly. The girls looked at each other for a few minutes: Ginny in patient expectation, Hermione lost in her own thoughts, not sure exactly what to say to her best friend. She finally settled on the truth.

"I brought Draco home last night." Ginny gasped loudly at Hermione's admission, prompting a swift glare for the interruption. "As I was saying, I brought Draco home, and I made us tea, hoping we could talk and get to know each other a little better since we never got on in school. We weren't here that long when George walked in. He looked upset about something, so I took him back to my room and-"

"You shagged him with Draco in the next room?" Ginny was shocked at her friend's insanely, whorish behavior.

"What?" Hermione yelped in surprise at Ginny's outburst. "Of course not! We talked for a few minutes and then he decided to leave, so we went back into the kitchen, where we had left Draco. Draco excused himself, so George decided to stay for a chat. I was still wearing my dress, having not bothered changing when I first got home, so I went back to my room to change. I was standing there in just my bra and knickers when George walked in and saw me. Well, it wasn't anything he hadn't seen before, so I didn't freak out and cover up or anything of the sort. He told me I was beautiful. Then he kissed me. It was so different than what we had ever done before. He touched me, made me come, and then we fell asleep together. He was gone when I woke up." Hermione's voice had trailed off the longer she talked. Ginny could tell her best friend, like a sister to her, was heartbroken that George left.

"I'm so sorry, Mione!" Ginny was almost in tears at the look on Hermione's face as she had recounted her story. "When I saw George this morning, he looked like his favorite dog blew up in right in front of him. I just figured maybe you ended it with him or something."

"Ginny, it's okay. You had no way of knowing." Hermione stood with a sigh and went back to her cup of tea in the kitchen. Ginny followed and made her own cup of tea before sitting down across from the older girl. She gave her a sympathetic glance before she started talking again.

"I really am sorry, Mione. I'm definitely going to stop and talk to George once I leave here. It sounds like it's his own fault that he's upset." Ginny sipped her tea, grimacing when she burned her tongue.

"Please don't, Gin. I'm sure that he'll come find me when he's ready to talk about it." Hermione's eyes were red from holding back the tears. She couldn't come up with a logical reason for wanting to cry so much, just that she didn't want things to be over with George. Not yet, at least. She really wanted to see how far they could go as couple; even knowing that they were never a couple, and never would be.

"Are you sure, Mione?" Ginny was almost certain that she was going to intervene at some point soon, but for now just looked remorseful for the sad brunette.

"Yes, Gin. I promise, if he doesn't come to me soon, then I'll go to him. I'll give him a week to sort through what he's feeling." Hermione wasn't even sure what she was saying, so caught up in her thoughts.

"Alright, Mione." Ginny downed the last of her tea, stood up, rinsed her cup out, and went to stand by her best girlfriend ever. "I love you, sister." The two girls embraced both trying to hold back tears; Hermione's of sorrow, Ginny's of sympathy.

"I'll see you tonight, Gin. I told your mum I'd be over for dinner." As she said it, both girls hoped that George wouldn't show up. The only thing he could do at this point was to break Hermione's heart even further, maybe even damaging her for good.

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><p><em>AN: Things are starting to heat up! At this point, things will get a bit worse before they get better; but they will get better! On another note, I have two other stories in the works that should be ready for posting about the time I finish with this fic. One of them is a Bill/Hermione called 'The Appointment' and the other is a Fred/Hermione/George called 'Accidents Happen'. Please let me know which one that you would prefer I start after this one. They are both multi-chapter fics. You can private message me with your preference, or just stick it in a review. I haven't gotten many reviews recently, and I'm not sure if everyone lost interest or not. If you're still interested in me continuing the story, please review!_


	10. Chapter 10

_Thanks to any and all who have read, reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story. Also, thanks to ravenclawlove who has helped ever so much in this venture._

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><p>George stomped around his and Fred's flat, mumbling to himself. He would periodically stop to clean this or that, or rearrange the furniture. He took a shower, trying to get <em>her <em>scent off of him; the smell of lavender and vanilla was cloying in its presence. He ventured into Fred's room, picking up dirty clothes and making his bed. Just as he was stepping out of his twin's bedroom, the floo activated, emitting his youngest, and only, sister.

"What is it now, Gin?" As much as he loved his sister, her presence was unwelcome when he was feeling broody.

"Well, if you must know, I just came from seeing Mione." Ginny's arms were crossed over her chest in a perfect Mrs. Weasley impression and she had a look on her face that clearly said 'is there anything you'd like to say for yourself? And if I don't like your answer I will hex you into next week'.

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" George went for nonchalant, knowing that Hermione had probably told Ginny all about their twisted relationship. He also knew that Ginny was a hopeless romantic and would side with Hermione no matter what she told his sister against him. Ginny didn't like his answer though, and her expression quickly darkened into something he didn't want to know too much about.

"Yes, seeing as you walked out on her this morning!" Ginny was fuming as she stood behind the couch in her brothers' flat, arguing with the most stubborn Weasley ever, and with Ron in the family that's really saying something.

"You don't know what you're talking about, Gin. You have no idea." George was upset, but found himself wanting to talk to someone about his feelings. Someone who wouldn't laugh at him like Fred, or someone who wouldn't threaten him such as Harry, or someone who wouldn't smother him, namely his mother. Maybe Ginny would be the perfect person to tell.

"I'd say I'm a bloody expert! I just spent the past half hour since I left here, holding Mione while she sobbed against me!" Ginny was grossly exaggerating, playing the guilt card like a pro; she could tell that Hermione was sad though, and knew it was because she had hoped that the night before may have changed something between them for the better.

"Sh-she was crying?" George was flabbergasted. He didn't know what to say to that information; it took a lot to make Hermione cry.

"Yes. She even asked me not to stop over here after I left. She's got a crazy delusion that you'll come to her to talk about last night sometime within the week." Ginny watched George's eyes, knowing the precise moment that her words sunk in. She patted his arm gently before walking back over to the fireplace and disappearing in a flash of green flames.

George had no idea how long he stood their staring at the fireplace, where his little sister had disappeared through, but he decided on the spot that he was going to go to the Burrow tonight to see Hermione. He knew that she had promised his mum that she would be there tonight, and he was going to talk to her about what had happened last night. He was still standing there thinking, when Fred walked in.

"Hey, Georgie. Still pissy?" Fred plopped down on the couch, not even bothering to look at his twin.

"Gin stopped by; you just missed her." George sat the chair nearest the end of the couch that Fred was sitting. He propped his feet up on the coffee table before turning to look at Fred.

"What did she want? You didn't scare her off like you did earlier, did you?" Fred was still annoyed with George for the way he had acted toward both him and Ginny when he had gotten home early in the morning. Ginny had left in a huff, unsure who to be mad at: George for being an ass, or Hermione for possibly doing something to make him an ass.

"She went to see Mione." George was gauging Fred's reaction, knowing that Fred loved teasing George about their relationship.

"And?" Fred knew there was more to his little sister's visit than George was readily providing.

"She cried." George was no longer paying any attention to Fred. He was thinking about what to say to Hermione to make it up to her that he walked out before she even woke up this morning. Fred didn't immediately respond, as he wasn't sure what to say to that.

"Over you?" He definitely didn't mean to sound so shocked, and winced when George's gaze jerked up to look at Fred with a dark expression on his face.

"Yes. I believe so; but I guess Ginny might have made her cry..." George's attempt at a joke was completely lost on Fred, who was currently feeling bad about inadvertently insulting his twin.

"I'm sure it'll work out. You two just need to talk." Fred stood up and made his way into his kitchen, pulled out a couple of butter beers, and walked back into the living room to hand one to George. The two just sat there, occasionally taking a swig from their bottles, both completely quiet.

"I'm going to dinner tonight. I want to make it right with her," George spoke with a lot more conviction than he was actually feeling.

"Sounds good." Fred nodded slowly, not entirely sure if it was a good idea to talk so soon after the incident.

"I'm scared though, Freddie. What if I tell her how I feel, and the only reason that she was upset this morning was because Ginny accused her of something? What if she doesn't want to give a real relationship a try?" George was quickly getting himself worked up, not wanting to get his hopes up, but also not wanting to give up hope.

"You'll never know if you don't talk to her, Georgie." Fred loved his twin dearly, but was sick of the whole 'woe is me' act. He never used to be so needy.

George released a sigh of frustration. He wanted to talk to Hermione, but didn't want to talk to her at all; not after leaving her without saying good-bye. Last night shouldn't have happened, and he didn't know how to fix it. He needed to find Ginny and talk to her about it. She was Mione's best friend; she would know how George should proceed. He dropped his feet to the floor, stood up, set his beer on the coffee table, walked the two steps to the fireplace, grabbed a handful of floo powder, and tossed it into the dying embers. He yelled out Ginny's address, then stuck his head into the green flames.

"Ginevra!" George decided the fastest way to get the girl's attention was to annoy her. It worked, as she came running from the direction of the kitchen. She must have been making lunch for herself and Blaise.

"What happened, George? Is it Fred? Is it mum? What's happened?" Ginny was freaking out. Her brothers never called her unless it was for an emergency, and she had just seen George earlier that same day: twice.

"Everyone's okay, Gin. Can we just talk?" George sighed deeply, resignedly. "About Mione?" Ginny nodded and stepped back so George could come through. Once he stepped out of the fireplace in the den, Ginny led him into the kitchen, where she had whipped up a quick salad. She pulled down a bowl and some dressing before pointing George to a seat across from her.

"What do you want to talk about?" She jumped straight to the point, not even letting George collect his thoughts. George launched into a tirade about how everything had started, and how things had developed clear through to that morning. Ginny spent most of the explanation with a smile on her face, knowing exactly what she had to say to George to get him to admit to the feelings that he obviously had, but was too scared to admit to.

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><p><em>AN: There is a poll on my profile asking which story you'd like me to start after the conclusion of this one. This story has eighteen chapters and an epilogue. Thanks for reading!_

_Please Review!_


	11. Chapter 11

_Thank-you to all who have ever bothered to click on my story, those that have favorited, and those that have alerted this story. Many thanks to those that have taken the time to review! And a special thanks to ravenclawlove for being an awesome beta!_

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><p>It was a warm, sunny, beautiful day at the Burrow. Mrs. Weasley had been cooking up a storm all day, happily waiting for the various members of her family to show up. Dinner wasn't supposed to be until six-thirty, and it was now six o'clock. Arthur was talking to Bill and Charlie in the back yard, while Fred and Ron were setting up some tables outside so there would be room for everyone to sit.<p>

Fleur was talking to Angelina in the living room as she changed little Victoire's diaper. Ginny and Blaise would be by any minute, and Hermione had said she would be there too. Percy was supposed to be bringing Aubrey, his fiancé whom he would be marrying in just under a year. She was so content with her family around her; she loved being surrounded by her children and their significant others. Just as she was pulling an elderberry pie out of the oven, a knock sounded on the door.

"Angie, love, can you get that for me?" Mrs. Weasley knew that Angelina was the closest to the door, and could only think that it must be another person for her to feed.

"Sure thing, Mrs. Weasley." Mrs. Weasley harrumphed quietly to herself, she kept asking all of those kids to call her 'Molly' but none of them ever did. She heard the door open, and the newest guest walk back into the kitchen.

"Hello, Mrs. Weasley." Harry Potter was grinning like a mad man at the woman who had always treated him like a son.

"Harry, dear! How are you?" It had been over a month since Harry had come around for Sunday night dinner, and he had been missed.

"I've been pretty good. How's everyone been here?" Harry always loved being accepted as part of the Weasley family, it made him feel like he belonged.

"Oh, wonderful, dear! How about you go help Fred and Ron set up for dinner? Everything is just about ready."

"Sure thing, Mrs. Weasley." Harry was always so agreeable.

"Call me Molly, dear." Mrs. Weasley knew that the suggestion fell on deaf ears every time she told someone, but she never stopped asking. Harry walked out the back door and, along with Ron and Fred, made quick work of setting up for dinner. Ron and Harry sat down to talk, while Fred walked off to find Angelina. They hadn't been sitting long, when Hermione made her appearance. She was dressed in tight, light-wash blue jeans and a see-through, one shoulder, dark blue top over a black camisole. She topped off the outfit with hair curled perfectly and in a ponytail that rested on her shoulder, make-up that made her eyes have a smoky, sultry look, and black, knee high high-heeled boots clearly on display with her jeans tucked into them. She was obviously trying to impress someone, it was just a good thing Harry and Ron were really oblivious; well, maybe not Harry.

"Hello, boys!" She hugged Harry and Ron in turn, even though she had just seen them yesterday. They smiled at her and the three friends settled in to chat.

"Why are you all dressed up, Mione?" Harry asked with a knowing twinkle in his eyes. Hermione blushed, but rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, Mione. How come you actually look pretty?" Hermione looked surprised and a little hurt by Ron's statement, but Harry only closed his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose, and sighed.

"Well, excuse me, Ronald for wanting to look nice for the only family I have left!" Hermione hissed, deeply hurt by Ron's statement. It was only a few minutes when Charlie called out to them with his hands full of different dishes from across the yard.

"Oi! You lot, get over here and help!" They all jumped to their feet, happy for any excuse to end the awkward silence, and hurriedly helped transport food to the table. Hermione was just grabbing the last bowl from the kitchen, everyone else was already outside, when the floo activated. Ginny walked in and gave her a huge hug. She was obviously still feeling bad from earlier.

"Mione! You look amazing!" Ginny was positively gushing over her friend. Hermione smiled and looked up to see Blaise patiently waiting for Ginny to calm down. The two nodded to one another politely, Ginny must have told Blaise that things weren't going to work out between her and Draco.

"Thanks, Gin! You two should get outside! Everyone was just waiting for me to grab this." Hermione turned around to pick up the bowl of asparagus behind her on the counter, when she realized that someone had already grabbed it. She looked toward the back door to see George holding open the door with one hand, while holding the bowl in the other hand. She didn't make eye contact with him as she walked through the door and toward where the rest of the family awaited them.

"Ginny! Glad you could make it, dearie!" Mrs. Weasley bustled over to hug her daughter. "Welcome, Blaise." She then hugged the tall Italian. "George! I thought you weren't coming?" The smile never left the woman's face as she finished her round by hugging George, and then Hermione, as she hadn't had the chance yet.

"Yeah, mum. You know me, couldn't pass up a home cooked meal," George mumbled as he found a seat as close to Hermione as possible. He ended up between her and Fred, with Harry and Ron directly across from them, with Ginny next to them. _Great, an audience. _George decided to wait and talk to Hermione until after dinner; hopefully in private.

The dinner wore on with the twins cracking off-color jokes, Bill and Fleur fussing over their daughter, Molly fussing over everyone, demanding to know why she didn't have more grandchildren, Harry glaring inconspicuously at George, Ginny glaring inconspicuously at George, Hermione glaring angrily at her plate, Percy babbling to everyone who will listen that he got another promotion at work, while Aubrey just nodded like she'd already heard it a billion times before, Arthur talking to Charlie about the dragons at the reserve, Angelina repeatedly declining any food that Fred tried to give her, and Blaise politely keeping his mouth shut, as he was just a bit terrified of his soon-be-wife's brothers. The usual dinner at the Burrow.

After everyone had eaten seconds, thirds, and in Ron's case, fourths, Mrs. Weasley stood to clear the table. Hermione gratefully took the excuse to get away from George and helped gather dishes. She walked into the kitchen, put down the dishes she was carrying onto the counter, and turned to go get more dishes as Molly started to run warm water into the sink. She was halfway across the yard when an arm suddenly reached out and grabbed her around the waist. She struggled a bit as soon as she realized it was George.

"Let me go!" She wiggled so much that George had to bring her back to his front so he wouldn't drop her.

"You may want to stop doing that," George grunted out, drawing Hermione's attention to the bulge that was now pressed up against her butt. George finally sat her down on her feet as soon as he had walked far enough away from the house. She realized that they were standing near the lake, and walked over to sit on the old, homemade, wooden bench beneath a large willow tree.

"What do you want, George?" Hermione asked with a sigh, drawing her knees up to her chest. She really didn't want to hear whatever it was he had to say. "I really don't want to hear whatever it is you have to say."

"Please, just give me a few minutes?" George wasn't above pleading. He would do anything at this point. Hermione sighed again. She hadn't even looked at him since finding out it was him that had grabbed her back near the house. Finally, her head rose to look him in the eye, and she dropped her legs back to the ground.

"Okay, George. Start talking."

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><p><em>AN: I apologize for the cliff-hanger, but I will be updating within the next few days so don't fret too much! Also, go check out the poll on my profile if you want a say in the next story I start posting after this one. There are only seven more chapters and an epilogue left!_

_Please Review!_


	12. Chapter 12

_Special thanks to ravenclawlove who beta'd this for me. Thanks to any and all who have read and reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story. Enjoy the new chapter, there will be more coming soon!_

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><p>Since that stupid night almost three weeks ago, Hermione had felt like she was floating. Nothing seemed to matter; everything was surreal. That Sunday night had changed everything. Well, everything between her and George, because that night, he had broken it off with her. They never really had anything to begin with, not really; but it still really hurt to have him completely out of her life. She's been so numb to all of Ginny's 'helpfulness' and just life in general. She even had to take a few days off work, which she never did, especially so close to the Ministry Ball, for a mental health day.<p>

Hermione sighed. It would eventually get easier, she knew. For now though, her heart ached and she felt like crying every fifteen minutes. She was always nauseous anymore; her current diet consisted solely of tea and toast. The ball was tomorrow night, and she was supposed to be going with a man that Ginny had set her up with. She was meeting that guy tonight, so she could be sure if she could tolerate him for the whole night at the ball.

Ginny had really been the best friend ever over the past few weeks. She understood what Hermione was feeling, and would do whatever she could to make her smile. The only problem was, Hermione wouldn't smile; she couldn't since that Sunday morning when she realized that George had walked out on her, and again that same night when he called it off for good. She thought about it a lot: it really was for the best, George ending their 'friends with benefits' arrangement.

Hermione was now fully aware that she had been falling for the handsome prankster. It was always questionable, like maybe she was just getting attached to the man as a really close friend that she could tell anything to; but she was sure now. She had never been surer about anything; she had been falling for him. She sighed again, completely lost in thought. She didn't even hear the knock at the front door of her apartment, signaling the arrival of her best girlfriend ever, Ginny.

"Mione?" Ginny's voice was uncertain as she let herself in. She quickly looked for the older girl and found her back in her room, sitting on the edge of the windowsill, staring out at the people walking several stories below. "Mione?" Ginny asked again, now standing directly behind her.

"Hmm? Oh, sorry, Gin; didn't hear you." She offered as a weak explanation, not even bothering to turn around.

"Mione, you have to stop this! It isn't healthy!" The girl could only mourn so long for someone who was still alive. Hermione didn't acknowledge that she had said anything at all, preferring to once again be lost in thought. Ginny sighed before continuing in a much gentler tone of voice. "Mione, your date will be here in about two hours. Would you like me to help you get ready?" It wasn't really a request.

"Sure, Gin." Hermione stood up as if on autopilot and went to take a shower. She didn't know who Ginny was setting her up with this time, but she didn't really care. Maybe this new guy would help take away the pain. She held back her tears, knowing that she had already cried way too much over George, who obviously didn't like her as more than a friend. She could do friends, friends were easy. Her stomach gave a lurch at this thought, and she had to swallow convulsively to keep the sick at bay.

"Mione?" A soft knock sounded on the bathroom door, causing her to realize where she was and quickly get out of the shower. She opened the door to see that Ginny had laid out a nice outfit for her date that night: a ruffled, dark purple, short-sleeved top, a short black skirt that ended mid-thigh, a black choker that had belonged to her grandmother, and a pair of black pumps.

Ginny led her over to the vanity in her corner, doing her hair in a bun with a few curls hanging down here and there. She then did Hermione's make-up, giving her a subtle exotic look. She had high hopes for this date tonight, if it didn't work out between the two actually going on the date, then it would hopefully at least help Hermione get over her idiot of a brother.

"There! You're all done." Ginny was smiling triumphantly at the completed outfit. Hermione looked fantastic. Ginny left Hermione in her room, going to go get her date. She wasn't gone long when she came to lead Hermione out into her living room. A tall man with dark brown hair and dark brown eyes was standing next to Blaise; apparently Ginny decided a double date was safest. "Hermione Granger, I'd like you to meet Theodore Nott."

"Theo, please," Theo remarked as he lifted Hermione's hand to his lips and gave her knuckles a soft kiss.

"Hermione." Hermione returned the greeting softly, admiring this man's fathomless eyes. Ginny and Blaise shared a smirk, noticing that the man and woman before them were clearly intrigued by each other. Hermione hadn't shown interest in anything since George broke up with her. Perhaps she was beginning to heal.

"Come on! We have reservations at seven!" Blaise finally spoke, breaking the spell between the two. They both glanced sharply at him, obviously having forgotten his existence for a brief moment. They both nodded, following Blaise and Ginny to the front door, stopping to get Hermione's light wrap on the way by.

The two couples apparated to the restaurant and were seated with no incident, the men pulling out the chairs of the two women. Blaise ordered some really expensive wine, and everyone placed their orders. The four adults talked amicably about many things. Theo was very charming, and Hermione found herself smiling as he told her all about himself. She didn't remember him from school, but he explained that he had always been fond of her. He used to be so jealous that she got so much better grades than him, and he studied all the time. This had her laughing, knowing that she lived and breathed revisions during school.

The time seemed to fly by, and before they even realized it, dinner was over, and it was past ten. Hermione invited everyone back to her place for tea and they all accepted. The four of them continued on with the conversation they had stopped at the restaurant, about the rights of leprechauns in Ireland.

"Well, it doesn't mean that they can't own land, just that they can't purchase it unless they've been working the land for at least fifty years." Theo argued.

"But they only have a lifespan of about fifty years! Unless someone gives them some land, they have no hope of ever being their own people, so to speak." Hermione was always lobbying for the rights of magical creatures.

"That may be true, but what difference does it make? Once they have the land, no matter how they get it, they can easily pass it on to other leprechauns after they die, thus making it so that they eventually wouldn't ever have to worry about owning their own property." Theo made a valid point, and Hermione was so caught up in thinking about it that she didn't realize that Ginny and Blaise had let themselves out.

"But then who would do business with a leprechaun?" Hermione was enjoying the debate; she and George never talked like that.

"What do you mean? Other leprechauns of course!" This had them both laughing, and Hermione realized that she liked this man's laugh. It was deep and musical. She had no sooner had that thought when Theo leaned over on the couch they were sharing and pressed his lips to hers. His lips were gentle against hers, instinctively knowing not to press her too much.

The kiss continued, both opening their lips slightly at the same time. At that point, it quickly grew heated. They continued on like that for awhile before they pulled back, placing soft pecks against each others' lips, both with smiles on their faces. They locked eyes, and Hermione felt her cheeks grow warm. She made a quick decision and stood, pulling him up by his hand. He leaned down for another quick kiss before letting her lead him back to her bedroom.

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><p><em>AN: I'd really like to apologize for leaving it at this, but I will remind you that this is a George/Hermione story, and also that it is marked 'drama' under genre. Things will eventually get better between our two leads. Go check out the poll on my profile page! And as always..._

_Please Review!_


	13. Chapter 13

_Thanks to all who have read, reviewed, favorited, and alerted. Special thanks to ravenclawlove for beta'ing for me! Super thanks to harrys-girl-4-life for reviewing every chapter so far, and taking the time to write something nice every time! On with the story..._

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><p>Hermione reached up to sift her fingers through Theo's hair, pulling his head down so she could run her tongue across his lips. He immediately pulled her body against his, molding them together from pelvis to chest. They stumbled across the room, not breaking apart at the lips even as they fell across the bed. Theo kicked his shoes off as he slipped his hands under her top and grazed them up to her breasts. He palmed each one while Hermione moaned at the sensation. He broke the kiss to run his lips across her cheek and down her neck, only stopping to pull her shirt up and over her head.<p>

Theo nibbled her neck here and there sliding his hands around her back. He quickly unlatched her bra, rubbing his thumbs along her nipples as he went back to snogging her. Her nipples puckered under his touch, drawing his attention to her chest. He laved first one, then the other; blowing on each in turn.

Hermione toed her shoes off before wrapping her legs around his waist, trying to gain more leverage to grind her core against his obvious erection. They both moaned at the intimate contact; and, suddenly fueled by desire, began tearing one another's clothes. Hermione's knickers were torn off, her skirt pushed up around her hips, Theo's pants pushed down his legs, his shirt thrown over his shoulders.

Hermione pulled Theo back up for another rough kiss, all tongue and teeth. She lightly ran the nails of one of her hands down from his chest to his abs towards his cock. She gripped it and began pumping her hand up and down at an easy pace. Theo's head fell to the side with a grunt, to rest against her shoulder as she sped up her ministrations. After a few minutes, he pulled her hand away, shoved her skirt higher up her waist and positioned himself at her entrance.

Hermione cried out when he first slid in, automatically comparing Theo to George (George was a bit bigger). Theo buried himself completely inside of her with a grunt. She tightened the muscles of her pussy around his dick causing him to gasp in surprised pleasure.

"O God, Mia!"

Hermione immediately stilled and pulled back. She couldn't do this; it was too soon. Her eyes welled up with tears at this revelation. _How could she?_ It felt like the ultimate betrayal. Even if George didn't want her, she still loved him. She couldn't do this, she wasn't ready.

Theo noticed the change in her and leaned back to take in her expression. She had a look of horror stamped across her features, prompting Theo's member, still deep inside of her, to immediately begin to soften. _That's a real confidence boost._ He pulled back and turned to sit beside of her on her bed. She quickly scrambled to throw on a bulky, shapeless, maroon sweater with a giant 'R' across it, pull her skirt down, and pull up a pair of yoga pants before turning to face Theo. He didn't deserve her hot and cold attitude.

"I'm sorry." Hermione couldn't think of anything else to say. Nothing came to mind to cover up her sadness and the obvious embarrassment of the moment. She sighed and stared off at a spot on the floor across the room. "I'll let you get dressed," she whispered.

Theo didn't say anything as she left the room, closing the door with a soft click. He simply sighed and tugged his clothes back on. He opted to clean up a bit before facing her again, so he went into her bathroom and washed his face and hands. He knew the following conversation was going to be awkward; especially since they were supposed to go to the Ministry's Ball the next night as a date. _It could be worse._ Theo was mentally preparing himself for some sort of confrontation between him and the petite brunette.

He just wished he knew what happened to cause the sex kitten to turn into an ice princess in the blink of an eye. Everything was going wonderfully, and all of a sudden she just stopped responding to him. Now it was going to be awkward. Theo hated awkward.

Theo left the sanctuary of Hermione's bedroom, slipping his shoes on on the way out of the door. He walked down the hall to see her puttering around in the kitchen, making tea. She pulled cream out of the fridge, and sugar from the cupboard. She placed two tea cups on the table, brought the now whistling tea kettle over with the help of a potholder, and sat down in one of the chairs.

"Please sit, Theo. I think you deserve an explanation." Hermione went about making herself a cup with two teaspoons of sugar, and a small bit of cream. Theo sighed before taking a seat opposite the small witch. He poured a cup of tea and took a sip without adding anything to it. The subsequent burn prompted him to start talking.

"What just happened?" Theo really couldn't be much more confused.

"I have to apologize about that, Theo. You were just so sweet, and I've been really sad lately," her voice trailed off a bit as she realized what she just said.

"I'm your rebound?" Theo didn't know whether to be amused or annoyed.

"Maybe. Yes. I don't know." Hermione's tone of voice didn't change through that. The two were quiet for awhile, both intermittently sipping at the liquid in their cups, stopping once to fill them. Neither would actually look at the other, both not sure what to say. "I'm in love with George Weasley." Hermione's and Theo's jaws both dropped; Hermione couldn't believe she had just said something out loud that she hadn't been sure was true until right at that moment. Theo was shocked that she would be so blatant about something that obviously meant a lot to her. The two were quiet again, both running through things in their minds about her confession.

"That's nice." Theo couldn't think of anything else to say; he wasn't heartless enough to scoff, or sensitive enough to actually care. A realization came to him as he sat in the quiet between them. "Does he know?"

"Umm..." Hermione clearly didn't know how to answer the question. _Does George know? How could he not? _She decided that he must not really care about her at all; he was so willing to break-up with her. Well, not break-up, because they weren't dating, but ended their arrangement. No, George didn't have feelings for her; therefore, even if he knew how she felt, he wouldn't have cared anyways. It was a hard thing to think about: the person you were in love with not caring about you at all.

"He doesn't, does he?" Theo pushed.

"He was the one who decided to end our arrangement." Hermione stared at the table separating the two adults.

"You should tell him anyway. What's the worst that could happen? He can't reject you again." Theo was trying to find a way to wrap up the conversation and get out of the apartment, it had passed awkward awhile ago, and was now well on its way to disturbing.

"It would hurt if he knew my feelings for sure, and he still didn't want anything to do with me. It's one thing to guess, it's another thing to know for sure." Hermione still wouldn't look at the man in front of her. She had hurt his feelings, and here he was trying to help her. She sighed, finally deciding to look Theo in the eye. "You should go."

She stood and began to clean up the tea things. Theo allowed her silence, standing up to make his way to the door. In the kitchen entrance, he stopped in the archway and turned to say one more thing to her.

"I'll see you tomorrow." He walked out, calling out as he reached the front door, "Talk to Weasley!"

Hermione smiled slightly to herself, knowing that Theo wouldn't see. He really was a sweet guy. _Too bad he's not George._

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><p><em>AN: Please don't be angry with this bit of Theomione... This really was a turning point for Hermione, though. She just realized the depth of her feelings for our sexy Weasley twin. What's going to happen next? Next update Thursday!_

_Please Review!_


	14. Chapter 14

_Thanks to all who have reviewed, favorited, or alerted this story. It means a lot that someone actually likes my writing. A special thanks to ravenclawlove for beta'ing this story. She always managed to beta for me, even though she was too busy to. And now, as they say, on with the show!_

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><p>It was the night of the Ministry Ball and Hermione was staring at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. She was wearing her beautiful bronze dress, elegant chocolate pearls, and sexy six-inch spike heels. Her make-up was browns and golds, with a little extra golden sparkle above her eye lids, and everlasting lip gloss, a Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes product, with just the barest hint of beige coloring to it. Her hair was in an elegant up-do with a few curls hanging down here and there. She looked fantastic, if she could say so about herself, but she wasn't looking at herself. She was staring off into space, thinking about George again. She still couldn't believe that she had blurted out that she loved him to Theo the night before, and he had just smiled and offered some advice.<p>

Shaking herself to clear her head, Hermione turned to leave the bathroom. She decided it was time to go out and face Theo, he had been sitting out in the living room for the past forty-five minutes. Taking slow, deep breaths while she walked, she finally entered the room to see Theo in a black dress robes with a bronze tie in the exact shade of her dress, black dress shoes, and he had his hair done in a sexy tousle. He had come dressed to impress; and impress he did. He turned to face her and they both appraised one another in silence for a few short minutes before he took a step towards her.

"You look ravishing," Theo spoke with eloquence and Hermione forced a small smile at his choice of words, knowing it was unintentional after last night. He brought her hand to his lips, kissed her knuckles softly, then tucked it into the crook of his elbow. "Are you ready?" They both knew that he meant more than just going to an annual ball that not many people truly cared about, but a lot of people attended nonetheless.

"As I'll ever be," Hermione mumbled quietly, going slightly pale. Theo chuckled a bit and apparated them both to the apparation point at the edge of the atrium at the ministry. Kingsley Shacklebolt, Minister for Magic, was waiting for her off to the side, so together, the couple approached him. Hermione instantly smiled and gave Kingsley a little nod. "Minister," she said in greeting.

"Hermione! I've been waiting for you! And stop with the 'minister' business, please call me Kingsley." The Minister for Magic smiled at her in exasperation before taking her by the elbow and leading her off. He led her and Theo toward the ball room, but walked around the long way to a small, connected room behind it. Harry and Ron were already there waiting.

"Harry!" Hermione gave him a hug before doing the same for the red-head standing right next to him. "Ron!"

"Hey, Mione," the boys both answered at the same time. It wasn't until Theo stepped closer that they noticed him there.

"What's he doing here, Mione?" Ron was very confused by the presence of another Slytherin after seeing Blaise every time he saw his own sister, and Draco just a few weeks previous.

"He's my date, Ronald." Hermione would never get over how thick Ron actually was; Harry just rolled his eyes and nodded in Theo's general direction. Theo returned the gesture of civility before returning his attention to Ron and Hermione.

"What's with all the Slytherins, Mione? What do they have that we don't?" Ron was gesturing between him and Harry when he asked that last question. Hermione actually looked appalled by what Ron was implying.

"Ronald, we are just here as friends." Hermione was already starting to get annoyed by the red-haired git.

"Right, Mione. Like anyone actually believes that." He didn't even bother to make it into a question. She growled in annoyance before deciding then and there that she was just going to ignore Ron altogether. Turning back to Kingsley, whom had waited very patiently for her to get done arguing with big, dumb, idiot in the room, she looked at him expectantly, waiting for their directions.

"We four go out onto stage. Harry first, then Ron, then Hermione." Kingsley looked at each of them as he was explaining, making sure they were understanding. "I'll be last, and give the welcome speech. If any of you have anything prepared, you can say it. Otherwise, we'll just let Harry say his thank-yous and start the dancing. Who are the three of you dancing with?"

"I was hoping Theo would be willing?" Hermione said it as a question, and gave a brilliant smile when Theo nodded in agreement.

"And you two?" Kingsley raised an eyebrow at the boys.

"Luna," Harry answered quickly. Ron mumbled something under his breath that Hermione didn't catch, but Theo must have because he snorted out a quick laugh.

"What was that, Ronald?" Hermione broke her 'not talking to the red-haired, freckle-faced moron for the night' rule. Ron mumbled again, this time even more quiet.

"He said Millie." When Theo said this, Harry burst into laughter, and Hermione took on a green hue.

"As in Millicent Bulstrode?"

"Yes." Ron gave everyone a look that just dared them to keep poking fun at him. It took a few minutes, but everyone calmed down; two from amusement, one from illness.

"Alright then, everyone. Are we all ready?" Kingsley was clearly ready to get the welcomes out of the way. He waited for each of the three war heroes to nod before turning to look at Theo. "You'll need to head on out into the ball room. You can go back the way we came, and enter through the main doors." Theo nodded in understanding and left as directed.

The four walked out onto stage to the sound of roaring applause. Once they were all standing in front of the large roomful of people, Kingsley took the podium that was center stage, cast a sonorous spell on himself, and began his welcome speech.

"Good evening and welcome to the fifth annual Victory War Memorial Ball." Kingsley paused for the polite applause before continuing. "We have our war heroes: Ronald Weasley, Hermione Granger, and Harry Potter." More applause, much louder this time, echoed through the room. "We are forever in their debt." Kingsley concluded his short speech by stepping down and allowing Harry to step forward.

"It's with great pride that I can say this: 'Happy Anniversary'." Everyone cheered again. "It's been five Voldemort-free years and we are going strong as a society. Old prejudices are going by the wayside, people can now be together without ramifications. Our world is changing for the better, and it couldn't have happened without the help of each person that was willing to stand up and say 'no' to the world that he was trying to create." Harry paused for effect. "Thank-you, to every single one of you that fought. Be it for that one day, the month before the final battle, or for years since the first war. Everyone should be proud of themselves for what we did. It was more than about defeating the most evil wizard of all time. It was about putting aside years of prejudice, and working together to one ultimate goal, because we are first and foremost, all human. Thank-you."Harry concluded to loud, thundering applause.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione all stepped down to the dance floor and took their partners for the opening waltz. Theo was very graceful, much more so than the other two men dancing nearby. He and Hermione swirled around together, a spinning mass of bronze and brown beauty. She did catch sight of George and Fred off to the side at one point, causing her heart to skip a few beats. Theo must have noticed, because he smirked.

"Talk to him after this dance." Theo whispered, hardly moving his lips so no one would know they were talking. Hermione had just finally agreed, when the music stopped and polite clapping sounded. Another song started up, but she bucked up what little courage she had left to face George. She stalked over to him like the lioness she was often compared to, and tapped his shoulder to get his attention. He had been talking to Fred and Lee Jordan. When he turned to face her, his face slipped into an expressionless mask.

"Can we talk?" George finally agreed, and followed her out of the room to talk in the hallway.

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><p><em>Thanks for sticking with me, guys. Only three chapters and an epilogue to go! If you are interested in what else I have in the works, check out my profile page for the poll that's up over there. There is a TheoHermione I'm in the process of writing, as well, that isn't an option. If you'd rather that one, you can send me a PM. It just begged to be written after the last chapter... Well, as always-_

_PLEASE REVIEW!_


	15. Chapter 15

_Thank you to all who have favorited or alerted this story, you make me smile. Really big thank-you to all who have reviewed, you really make me feel like I have potential as a writer, especially with all of the encouraging things you say to me. Special thanks to ravenclawlove for beta'ing this. And now, on to the story! The big conversation..._

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><p>Hermione chewed on her bottom lip, nervous about the following conversation. She really needed to tell George how she felt, but how would he take it? Would he blow her off all the more? Would it completely destroy their friendship… more than it already was? She wouldn't allow herself any hope that he may return her feelings, it would be too painful. She continued to take slow, deep breaths, knowing he was still behind her. She could feel his presence, normally so calming, setting her nerves on edge.<p>

Once they made it out into the hallway, away from the Ball and the many ears in attendance, Hermione turned to face George. She couldn't force herself to look him in the eye, so stared at a spot above his left shoulder instead. He wouldn't look at her either, but she didn't notice. He was staring above her head. Gone was the man who was always making her laugh; gone was the man who treated her like she was a goddess in bed. The two stood facing each other in awkward silence for a few minutes before she finally spoke.

"How've you been?" She still didn't look at him, unable to find the courage to look him in the eye after everything. _Some Gryffindor I am._

"Alright, I suppose," George answered without any emotion; he was apparently not going to elaborate on anything, only answer direct questions. Well, fine by her. Then maybe she could confess her love and he wouldn't say a word to her in disgust or otherwise.

"That's... nice." Hermione had never been at such a loss for words. She couldn't believe what was happening between the two. She never imagined in a million years that George would be so cold and unfeeling in his answers. He didn't say anything more, so she decided to keep talking. If she kept him talking, maybe she'd eventually regain the strength to tell him what she had originally planned to. "How's the shop?" _Really? That's what we're going with?_ Her own thoughts were starting to get on her nerves.

"Busy." _Love those one word answers. _George sighed, clearly annoyed that she had pulled him out of the Ball for this trivial conversation.

"Oh. I see." She was losing steam, nothing coming to mind to talk about. She couldn't take the silence anymore; she couldn't not know what happened between them. It was like walking around without her heart, for it was surely broken by now. "What happened, George?" It took all of her strength to keep her voice from wavering with the tears she felt coming, just below the surface; it had been bothering her that he had so readily ended their relationship, had offered to explanation, and they suddenly stopped being friends even though they both knew it would eventually end. George was so quiet for so long that she was sure he wasn't going to answer. She was just about to walk back into the ballroom and forget about confessing her feelings when he finally spoke.

"I'm sorry." It was so quiet, she wasn't sure that he had actually said anything at all, so gathering the final dregs of her courage, she finally looked him in the eye. He had turned to look directly at her at the same time and what she saw left her speechless for a few moments: she saw a flash of pain, and maybe a little anger. _Maybe not the hurt, but definitely the anger. _Perhaps it would be best to just not dwell on what all had happened between them, and try to salvage what they could of their friendship, he was clearly angry that she couldn't take a hint and leave him alone.

"It's okay, George. Can we just go back to how it was before?" Hermione was pleading at this point, she could hear it in her voice and wasn't the least bit ashamed about it; she truly missed having him to talk to, as they would quite frequently. Her heart wouldn't be able to handle it if she lost his friendship too. "Before our arrangement." She felt the need to clarify that she wasn't trying to force him to go back to regular fucking. George didn't answer right away. She wished she knew what he was thinking about, she always used to be able to figure it out quite easily. Was he weighing his options about whether or not to try friendship again? Or was he remembering all the sex?

"I don't think I can, Mione." George looked like he was in pain as he spoke so quietly that she had to strain her ears to hear him. He could no longer hold her gaze, and suddenly found her shoes to be quite interesting.

"Why not?" She was on the verge of tears, anyone could hear them in her voice now. She couldn't give him up altogether, it would break her beyond repair. She took a few deep breaths as inconspicuously as possible, so as not to alert George to her current predicament.

"I'm so sorry, Mione." George turned to walk back into the ballroom, not willing to turn around and look at the sadness etched across the face of the woman he loved. He couldn't go back to just being friends after losing his heart to her; it would kill him to see her everyday and know that he could never have her. Every time she laughed, or even just smiled in his direction, a small piece of him would die. He would never be able to manage it. He couldn't even admit his feelings to her a few weeks back without chickening out and breaking up with her—no, not breaking up, because they had never dated.

"I'm sorry too, Georgie." He heard the plea in her voice and his step faltered. He wouldn't look back though, not again. He couldn't handle seeing her so sad and knowing that he was the one that caused it. She let him walk away, not even bothering to try and stop him. She would let him walk away for now, and maybe someday they would be okay again. She could only hope it would be sooner, rather than later.

She went back into the Ball and didn't see him for the rest of the night. He was either really good at avoiding her, or he had left right after their talk. She could be found lost in thought whenever anyone tried to talk to her. Theo had tried several times to get her to tell him what happened, but he eventually gave up and wandered off to go talk to some of his friends.

Ginny walked up and hugged Hermione, telling her how beautiful she looked, but mumbling about how much better the magenta dress would have looked. She didn't respond, not even fully registering that anyone was talking to her. She couldn't stop thinking about George. It was always George. How could she just forget about him after all the talks, the realizations about her feelings, and the most mind-blowing sex she'd ever had? It was unthinkable.

Ginny must have finally noticed that she wasn't getting a response to anything she said or even asked, because she stopped talking. She scrutinized the brunette witch closely, seeing a glazed look in her eye.

"Hermione Granger! Are you listening to a word I've said?" Hermione seemed startled that Ginny was standing next to her at all.

"I'm sorry, Gin." That's all she said; she offered no explanation for her aloofness. She then went right back to staring off into the distance.

"Mione! What's wrong with you?" Ginny was much quieter this time, having realized that her exclamation before had drawn the attention of all the nearby witches and wizards.

"I just have a lot on my mind." Ginny sighed, putting the pieces together.

"Is it Theo? I thought you guys got along great yesterday. You seemed to like him well enough." Ginny was genuinely worried for her best girlfriend, she couldn't still be thinking about her older brother; could she?

Hermione shook her head. It wasn't Theo that had her so upset. It had to be George.

"Is it George?" Ginny whispered her query, but Hermione still heard her and started to tear up a bit. She nodded needlessly and Ginny quickly whisked her away, back into the room that Kingsley had led her to earlier. She held back her tears until she knew that no one could see where the two girls went.

Hermione then let all of her pent-up emotions go. Everything she had left in her from George's speech three weeks ago, everything from her realization the night before, and everything from their talk earlier. She sobbed, allowing Ginny to hold her. How could someone be in so much pain from heartbreak, feeling it physically, and still love the man who hurt her?

"Shh. It's alright, Mione." Ginny continued to murmur soothing words to the witch that was falling apart in her arms. She was going to have a serious talk with George in the near future.

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><p><em>AN: That didn't go very well between our two main characters... Well, there are only three chapters and an epilogue left, so it's coming to a close. That also means you're running out of time to get a say in the next story I start posting after this one has reached its end. There is a poll up on my profile page, and if you'd rather see the Theo/Hermione story up (which I don't have as an option on the poll) then just PM me about it, or stick it in a review. You know what to do next!_

_PLEASE REVIEW!_


	16. Chapter 16

_Thanks to any and all who have read or reviewed at any time during this story! Super thanks to ravenclawlove for being such an awesome beta! Without any further ado, I bring you chapter 16!_

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><p>No one could ever say that George Weasley didn't love his shop. He and Fred had worked for years to finally have a shop of their own. He adored working with the customers, telling them about the latest products, flirting with the teenage witches to get them to buy more stuff. He loved working in the back room, creating new products, testing the new ideas. He enjoyed working behind the register, bantering with people he knew in school, throwing in random free products for the smallest children. Looking at him now, you wouldn't believe any of that.<p>

George currently stood in the back room of the shop, surrounded by an assortment of boxes, each stuffed full of the owl-ordered products set to go out soon, prototype products, and even a few discontinued items. He was supposed to be working on some products for the Wonder Witch line: hair taming potion, everlasting lip balm, and a modification for the love potions. The only problem with that, was everything seemed to remind him of _her._

He couldn't get her out of his head. He hadn't stopped thinking about her since the Ministry Ball two weeks before. The look on her face when he said he couldn't handle being friends with her hit him hard. _He _was the one who was heartbroken; not her. It was _him_ that died a little inside when they talked. It was _him _that didn't sleep for three days, finally collapsing from exhaustion. It was _him_ that had begun drinking firewhiskey every night since. It wasn't healthy, he knew that, but he couldn't help it; the liqueur was the only thing that made him forget about her.

He was lost in his thoughts for awhile, stirring the hair taming potion without really paying any attention. He slid in some daisy root, stirring counter clockwise twelve times. This was his third batch. The first one had turned all hair neon blue, and didn't tame it at all. Lee had unknowingly tested that one this morning, his hair could still land a muggle airplane.

The second one had made all hair go pin-straight, but it also sparked uncontrollably. Verity had to take the day off because she kept shocking the customers, even when they were nowhere near her. George was sure he would get it this time though, even with his thoughts wandering. He just had to increase the amount of powdered bicorn horn, and decrease the amount of pixie dust. He was sure the pixie dust was causing the sparking, and if he also increased the bicorn horn a bit, he should be able to overpower the effects of the pixie dust and stop the hair from sparking. The next problem was the complete straightening part. He really just wanted it to tame hair; be it frizzy or curly. He decided to also decrease the amount of asphodel root, completing the potion with six clockwise turns, and three counter clockwise turns.

Finished with the potion, he stretched, popping his back in a few different places. He quickly bottled it, thinking about what to do with it now. He only had one other person besides himself to test the product on, and he wasn't sure how happy Fred would be with him; it could be payback for turning all of George's clothes into clothes Snape would wear last week. Just as he had this thought, a door slammed loudly, causing the potion to ripple in the cauldron. He looked around, sure that it was the storage room door that was flung open so hard. He saw a big blob of red hair coming toward him and knew that Ginny had come for a visit, and not necessarily a pleasant one.

"George Fabian Weasley!" Ginny was mad. She only used full names when she was annoyed or, as she looked now, down right pissed. He took in the fact that her freckles seemed to disappear on her red face, her scowl was the darkest he'd ever seen it (this had him trying to remember if he had pulled a prank on her recently, but he couldn't think of anything), and her hair was one big mass of fire on top of her head. George gulped as his youngest sibling stormed up to him; he tried not to show his fear.

"What can I do for you today, Gin?" George asked, not even bothering to try and smile; he hadn't been able to for over a month anyways.

"I'm sick of this! You need to talk to Mione!" Ginny had really tried to let them work it out for themselves, she wasn't going to interfere at all; until today.

"No, Gin. I really can't do that." George wouldn't make eye contact with his sister.

"Why not?" Ginny asked impatiently.

"You wouldn't understand." At this, Ginny actually growled in frustration.

"Wouldn't understand? You don't think I would understand?" Her face turned even redder as George continued to avert his gaze. "How's this for understanding?" The question was rhetorical as she started ranting right away. "I understand that I've spent every night for the past two weeks at Mione's apartment because she needed someone. I understand that she cried herself to sleep every night, thinking that I couldn't hear her. I understand that she hasn't hardly eaten unless forced to. I understand that she wakes up from nightmares, screaming your name, just to reach over and find herself alone again. I understand that she is completely heartbroken; and it's all your fault." She had slowly been losing steam until she ended on a whisper.

George was speechless. _Did their friendship really mean that much to her?_ She was really upset about this, and he found that he was the one who didn't understand. Ginny had tears glistening in her eyes, her friend's pain having worn her down. She couldn't even look at her brother now. If he was that dense, then maybe Mione would be better off without him after all.

"I'm sorry, George. I need to go. Mione was taking a bath when I left; although I doubt she's even twitched a muscle, she needs me." Ginny quietly left, not having noticed her hair completely smooth out, flipping up just slightly at the ends. George couldn't even be happy that the potion worked, he was worried about Hermione.

_Hermione. _Just thinking the name would either bring tears to his eyes, or made him smile. Lately, he just wanted to cry all of the time. He was so in love with her. He'd never been in love before. He was just so scared. He had wanted to tell her over a month ago, when they were at the Burrow. He had been so nervous though, and at the last minute decided that there was a reason they had set stipulations in the first place: don't fall in love, they could always tell the other anything. He broke both of those rules.

George made a few notes on a clipboard, deciding he had done enough work for the day. The potion worked, he needed a drink. He left the room, glancing around for Fred. Seeing Lee's hair made the corners of his mouth twitch up a bit, but he still didn't smile. Finally seeing Fred near the stairs, he walked over to let him know that he was going on up to the flat. It wasn't until he was right next to him that George realized who Fred had been blocking from the view of the shop.

"Hey, Georgie! Did Gin-Gin find you?" Fred knew very well that Ginny had found George, he heard the yelling before he silenced the room from the rest of the shop.

"Yeah." George didn't elaborate, currently too busy staring at the man in front of him.

"I was hoping we could talk?" As much as it should have been a question, Harry Potter, the-boy-who-was-clearly-pissed-off-about-something, didn't mean it as such. The messy haired man turned and lead the way upstairs, hoping for some privacy.

George followed him, not in the mood for another tongue lashing, but also not in the mood to argue. He moved into the kitchen pulling out a bottle firewhiskey. He poured himself an entire glass before setting down the bottle and handing the-boy-who-couldn't-handle-his-whiskey a glass. As expected, the other man just set the glass down and didn't drink anything. George was sipping his drink as he waited for the inevitable talk.

"What did you do?" George wasn't expecting the question and quickly looked around to see if their was someone else in the room with them. There wasn't. "To Mione, George. What did you do? I've never seen her look so bad, not even after she was tortured at Malfoy Manor."

Hermione had told George about the incident, she told him almost everything. He paled a little, thinking about how difficult it was for her to talk about it in the first place.

"Look, Potter, it's really none of your business, or my sister's for that matter, what we talked about to make her so sad." Just saying it out loud made George's heart ache for the petite brunette witch whom he had grown to love.

"Oh, it's definitely my business! It became my business when she showed up at work the Monday after the ball, forwarded all of Kingsley's mail to Hogwarts, reassigned two of my best aurors to work in the cafeteria, and signed her name all over her desk because she could have sworn that there were documents there! She hasn't been to work since and Kingsley's going barmy! She can't concentrate on anything!" The-boy-who-was-going-to-give-himself-a-heart-attack-if-he-didn't-calm-down was flapping his arms in the air trying to make his point. If George wasn't so upset himself, he would have laughed.

"What is with everyone today? What makes you all think that it was me that made her like that?" George knew it was his fault. He couldn't stand to see the woman he loved going slowly crazy; _good thing he didn't have to see it._

"I'm a lot more observant than everyone gives me credit for, I _am_ head of the auror department. I could tell that there was something going on with you two. I assumed it was some sort of secret relationship after the conversation we all had up here that day we were supposed to go shopping." Harry took a deep breath before continuing. "I don't know all the details, and I don't know exactly what happened to end things, but she's completely broken. Torture couldn't even break her like you've managed to do. You need to go apologize or something so she can get on with her life." Harry must have decided that he was done lecturing George because he stood to leave.

As the dark-haired, bespectacled man reached the door heading back down to the shop he turned around one last time. "She must have really loved you for her to be that hurt."

George felt his heart wrench into more pieces than it did the night he told her they couldn't see each other anymore. _She loved him? _The only question was whether or not it was friendship love, or more.

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><p><em>AN: Well, what did you think? Two more chapters after this one, and then an epilogue if enough people are interested. I will post the next chapter on Thursday, but only if I get at least a handful of reviews. This story really doesn't have many, and the ones I do have are from the same people. Just let me know what you think. There is also a poll up on my profile about what story I will start posting next after this one. There is one choice not one there, and that is a Theo/Hermione story. If you want that one, put it in a review or a PM. You know the routine..._

_PLEASE REVIEW!_


	17. Chapter 17

_Thanks to everyone who's read or reviewed, favorited or alerted! Special thanks to ravenclawlove for beta'ing even when she should have been studying! Enjoy!_

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><p>Her eyes were gritty. Her throat was raw. Her nose was sore. Her head ached. Her body throbbed with bursts of pain. Her heart was broken; possibly beyond repair. In short, Hermione Granger was a mess. She hadn't left her apartment since the ball; two weeks ago. She knew that she shouldn't be this upset over a relationship that wasn't an actual relationship, but try telling that to her heart. She'd never understood why women would be so upset over a break-up, not having known that heartbreak was a very physical ailment. It was the worst thing she'd ever been through—more so then even when she was tortured at the hand of Bellatrix Lestrange while she was on the horcrux hunt with Harry and Ron.<p>

Ginny had been over almost the entire two weeks, and she felt awful about that. She shouldn't be so broken and needy that she had a babysitter with her more often then not; and yet here she was. Harry was over the handful of times that Ginny needed to leave, and Hermione had never felt so bad for Blaise Zabini, having not even seen his own fiancé in the past two weeks.

She heaved a deep, depressed-sounding sigh. It was time to stop moping and go back to work. She stood up and went to take a shower, standing under the water for so long that she had to increase the temperature twice before she decided she'd been in there long enough. She toweled herself off and was already starting to feel more like herself. She felt even better after she fixed her hair, brushed her teeth, and did her make-up. She knew that it was afternoon, but she also knew that Kingsley couldn't function without her any longer. He had a meeting in less than an hour with a few foreign dignitaries and he would need her notes on the people and the countries they were from.

Knowing she wouldn't be able to stomach any food, she went ahead a flooed into the ministry, beautiful briefcase in hand. She came out in the atrium, used her wand to remove any soot from her person, and headed directly off to the Minister's office on the first level. She didn't smile at anyone, didn't stop for small talk; just continued until she was in front of Kingsley's office. Just as she was getting ready to open up the door to her boss' office, a young woman began arguing with her about just barging in; Hermione was baffled. Who was this girl?

"You can't just barge in here! Who do you think you are?" The girl was positively purple in color. Hermione raised her eyebrows at this. How could she not know who she was? She's a bloody war hero!

"Excuse me, but who, might I ask, are you?" Her voice was flat, like the answer didn't matter enough for her to actually inject a note of care into it. She noticed, however, that this stranger stood to her full height and puffed out her chest like one of those blasted peacocks running around the Malfoy Estate. This thought definitely amused her, and she cracked her first small, albeit, genuine smile in over a month.

"I'm the new secretary for the Minister for Magic himself!" Hermione shook her head, rolled her eyes, and pushed right past the girl and into the office she was standing guard over.

"You-you can't go in there!" The young woman was frantic now.

"Hermione! You're back! I trust all is well?" Kingsley was surprised and quite happy to see his friend and colleague back in his office. He had actually missed the bossy swot, and had found his job exponentially harder without her there to plan everything and just tell him what to say. He would be the first to admit that while he held the title of Minister for Magic, this small slip of a girl was the true minister.

"Kingsley! Your newest watch dog is trying to kick me out!" There was a hint of real amusement in her voice, and it caused Kingsley to guffaw loudly.

"Doris, go back to your desk." He dismissed the girl like she meant nothing to him, and in truth she probably didn't. The girl huffed in indignation, but did as she was bid. "What brings you in today, Miss Granger? You know very well that I gave you a month off to recover." Kingsley was well aware why the young woman needed to 'recover', but he respected her enough to struggle through actually doing his own work until she was able to come back to work. He had to admit to himself though, that she looked good, even if she did look too thin, like she hadn't been eating well.

"Awh, Kings!" The Minister for Magic was one of the only people to see her when she whined like a five year-old. He struggled to hold back a laugh at her expression and decided that he would just let her work for the rest of the day: all two and a half hours of it.

"Alright, Granger, what do you have for me?" The minister only called her by her last name when he was in full business mode.

"I have a brief personal bio on all of the foreign dignitaries coming in, as well as each of their views on certain issues. I've also compiled a separate folder full of statistics for each of the represented countries, the goal being to make it seem like you care about each of them personally and will do everything in your power to make sure that they each benefit from whatever transactions take place." Kingsley was impressed by the witch, she hadn't even come in to work for two weeks and was already back on top of her game.

"Sounds great, Hermione!" The large man leaped to his feet, pulled on his favorite purple and gold robes, and held out his hand for the files. Hermione smiled slightly and placed the stack of them (completely alphabetized and color-coded) in his hand. "Come along then, Hermione. We have a group of important businessmen to impress!"

Hermione smiled slightly before following Kingsley out of his office, down the hall, into the largest conference room in the ministry, and to the front of the room. She sat in the empty seat directly to Kingsley's right, quickly observing each of the men, and one woman, around the table they were at. Kingsley didn't even seem to notice that they were no longer in his office, he started right into his speech as if he had no problem with strangers.

"Welcome to the British Ministry of Magic, I am Kingsley Shacklebolt, the Minister for Magic. I suggest we start with general introductions of all in attendance, starting with this lovely young witch to my right. Miss Granger?" Kingsley looked expectantly at Hermione, so she had no choice but to start talking. She decided to keep it short and impersonal, only stating her name and her position at the ministry. Everyone followed her lead, easily recognizing the name of one of the most famous witches in the world.

The meeting continued on for the next two hours, everyone acting cordially and each getting their own input on certain topics. At the end of the meeting, it was decided that there would be new laws enacted involving the trade industry, as well as education. Hermione wasn't really paying much attention though, she couldn't really care less about the new laws. She was thinking about George again. She really missed him, hoping everyday that he would come see her, get down on his knees and beg for her forgiveness. But everyday she was that much more disappointed. She needed to see him; to talk to him. It was time to stop hiding from her feelings and just tell him. What's the worse that could happen, honestly? It's not like he can stop being her friend, or break-up with her or something of the sort.

She completely missed the end of the meeting while she was zoning out, and this was noticed by Kingsley. He cleared his throat, watching her blink out of her temporary fog and notice that they were now alone in the conference room.

"Hermione, you aren't ready to be here yet. You should go home, get some rest. Talk to George?" The last was said as a question, but it clearly wasn't meant as such. She sighed and averted her gaze.

"I was just thinking about that actually," she admitted, beginning to chew on her bottom lip.

"Go home." Kingsley shooed her toward the door. "Talk to him soon, Hermione. You know there are a lot of people who care for you and would support the two of you together." _Someone's awfully presumptuous._

"Thanks, Kings. I'll be back to work soon. I guess I just wasn't ready." Hermione looked a little sheepish at her admission, causing Kingsley to chuckle a bit.

"I'll make sure any new staff know who you are from now on, sorry about the mix-up." Kingsley grinned at her, making her respond in kind.

"It's okay, Kings. I can honestly say that I've never had anyone not recognize me since the war. It floored me really." The two friends shared a laugh about the secretary's faux pas.

"You really should be minister anyway, Hermione. You already do all the work." He said the same thing to her everyday.

"If I was minister than I wouldn't be able to take time off like I have the past couple weeks. I'm really sorry about that by the way." She used any excuse she could to wave off his opinion.

"Hermione, I would step down tomorrow if you'd take up the position. You know you'd have the backing of the wizengamot and the entire wizarding population as well." Hermione just smiled.

"Thanks, Kings. Maybe next week." With that she walked out, completely sure that they would be having the same conversation every week until they no longer worked together; just like they'd already been doing for the past two years. She smiled slightly again, thinking about George this time. It was time to get everything out in the open. No more lies, no more ignoring each other. She was going to talk to him, and he was going to sit there and listen.

Having finally made up her mind, Hermione apparated out of the Ministry and into the Leaky Cauldron. She was going to need the short walk to Weasley's Wizard Wheezes to collect her thoughts, but there was no way she was going to back down; not this time.

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><p><em>AN: This was the last chapter before the Hermione-George confrontation! There is now only one chapter left, and an epilogue if enough people are interested. Go check out the poll on my profile page! As of now, the votes for 'Accidents Happen', a Fred/Hermione/George story, are winning. Meaning, it shall be the next story that I post. If you have any questions or comments, please shoot me a PM. And by now you know what to do:_

_PLEASE REVIEW!_


	18. Chapter 18

_Thanks to everyone who has stuck with me through to the end of this story. Every single one of you have made me smile at least once! Once again, thank-you to ravenclawlove for beta'ing: you've been amazing! Enjoy chapter eighteen: the final chapter!_

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><p>Hermione opened the door and walked into Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. Immediately, a blur of light blew past in front of her face, exploding somewhere off to her left. She heard a loud, booming voice bellowing out a greeting to her, as well as whizzing, buzzing, and bleeping all over the store. There were flashing lights everywhere, but she wouldn't let herself be distracted. She was here on a mission.<p>

She approached the front counter and stood in line for a few minutes before she was standing in front of Verity. She offered the other woman a smile and asked for George.

"He's in the back. Works there all the time now." Verity turned to help an actual customer, pointing in roughly the direction of the back room.

Hermione took a few deep breaths before walking toward the door that separated the shop from the development room in back. She gently pushed open the door and followed the sounds of clinking glass, and scraping. She heard someone muttering to themselves, but couldn't see anyone behind all of the boxes that were stacked up in the room. As she stepped around the boxes, she cleared her throat to get his attention.

"Not now, Fred! I've just about got this." George was slowly pouring some dragon's blood into a cauldron, not even bothering to look up.

"I can wait," Hermione said, drawing George's immediate attention. He quickly put a stasis spell on his potion and turned to face her.

"What do you want?" He sounded so cold that she winced slightly before pinning him with a cold stare of her own.

"Come with me." She turned on her heel and walked out of the room, not stopping when he tried to gain her attention. She walked over to the stairs, and up to his and Fred's flat. She went into the living room and sat down on the couch. After a few minutes he joined her, but sat on the chair as far away from her as possible. They were both quiet for awhile, until George finally broke the silence.

"Well?" He didn't want to be anywhere near her. He loved her, and he let her go. _Isn't there a muggle saying like that?_ Anyways, he couldn't sit anywhere near her without feeling the heartache of letting her go in the first place.

"I love you." She hadn't planned on blurting it out like that, but now that she had she waited for his reaction with bated breath. He didn't respond for quite some time, and she was beginning to think that he was trying to let her down easy now that he knew the extent of her feelings.

"Um... What?" George didn't know what to say. She loved him? Really? He couldn't believe it, his mind was reeling. What should he say? Should he tell her the truth? He thought he might. He really should. He did love her too after all.

"I said, George, that I'm in love with you. I didn't mean to be. It really just sort of happened. Sometime between our first time together, and the night you stayed. That was actually the night I knew for sure. I haven't stopped thinking about you since. I haven't been able to eat, or sleep in weeks. I'm always thinking about you. I just can't take it anymore. I need you to understand." She stopped talking to look him in the eye and gauge his reaction; she wasn't in Gryffindor for nothing. He was silent for another few minutes and she quickly lost steam. She started having all kinds of doubts about why she had shown up in the first place, and she suddenly stood up. "I have to go."

She started to walk away, not able to hear the rejection speech that he was obviously composing in his mind as he sat there listening to her spill her heart out. She had just made it to the door when she felt his hand on her shoulder. He turned her around to face him and just looked at her. He continued to stay silent, not saying a word. It took him awhile of looking into her eyes before he finally spoke.

"I love you, too." And that was all it took for Hermione to be in his arms. He pulled her toward him and brought his face down to hers to press their lips together. They kissed slowly and chastely. He introduced his tongue after a bit, gently prying her lips open. She acquiesced immediately, allowing his tongue to slip in with a small groan from both of them.

George swooped down and picked her up bridal style, carrying her back to his bedroom. He didn't give another thought to work, concentrating as he was on the sexy witch in his arms. Their lips didn't break apart once on the trip through the flat, they were both in such ecstasy. They were both thinking the same thing as George laid her down on the bed as gently as if she was a piece of glass.

_What did I do to deserve this? How could life truly get any better from here?_

George wrapped his large hands around her sides, pulling gently at the edge of her shirt. She smiled into their kiss, knowing he was asking for permission, and nodded. He pushed the blouse up her stomach, lightly caressing every inch of skin as he went. He had to pull back from their kiss to slip her shirt over her head, but then they went right back to it. Hermione managed to get his shirt up to his arms, where he was holding his weight above her, without any hassle, but had to wait until George was ready to pull back again to allow her to tug it completely off of him.

George pressed Hermione down into the bed, needing to feel the skin on skin contact that he knew they both craved. They both moaned at the contact, prompting George to reach beneath his witch and undo her bra. Before she even realized it, they were both topless; and it felt so _good_. She hadn't realized how much she needed this man until this moment.

Hermione allowed the kiss to go on for a another couple of minutes before finally pulling back to catch her breath. When she broke the kiss, George just rerouted his attention to her neck and found a place to nip and suck there that practically caused her to purr. She moved her hands down to his trousers, having had them wrapped in the hair at the back of his neck, and began removing the offending article. She struggled a bit before George finally helped her, pushing his pants down his legs, revealing that he had gone commando that day.

He then immediately turned his attention to Hermione's pants, which were even more of a hindrance then his, as they were now the last piece of clothing in their way. He nipped his way across her throat, sucking on the sensitive flesh, and leaving a love bite. He soothed her skin with a few laves of his tongue before moving on to the other side of her neck. He nibbled there a bit too, distracting himself with the wonderful noises that she made, rather then the removal of her pants. He did come back to the pants however, pushing them down until all she had to do was wiggle and they would slip off.

Next were her panties. She must have been feeling rather daring that morning, as she was wearing a very sexy, red g-string. He could barely see any fabric, the thing was so tiny. He found it quite enchanting. She simply wiggled out of that as well, then wrapped her legs around George's waist. He could feel how wet she was against his swollen member. It was _really_ turning him on. He leaned down so that his entire body was covering hers.

"I love you," George whispered as he slid into the warm, tight, wet haven awaiting him. She gave a low groan, meeting him thrust for thrust. They took it slow, but even going so slow it felt blissful. They traded gentle kisses, both looking deep into the others' eyes the whole time. They both began to climax at the same time; Hermione's walls began to clench around George, and he began to fall out of rhythm with his thrusts. They came together, both crying out at the sensation.

"I love you, too, George," Hermione managed to say back after she caught her breath. He rolled to his side, not able to hold himself up any longer, but not wanting to crush her either, taking her with him so that she was cuddled into his chest.

"I'm so sorry. I was such an idiot." He was rather flustered that they could have been making love this whole time, instead of all the intense fucking, but she hadn't said anything either.

"Me too, George. I'm sorry I didn't say it sooner." She laid her head on his chest, finding his heartbeat quite soothing.

"I love you so much, Mya," George whispered as he pulled the blanket up over them.

"I love you too, Georgie," she answered. They would both never get tired of hearing it; never get tired of saying it.

With that being said, they promptly fell asleep, snugly wrapped up in each other. Blissfully unaware that Fred had walked past at the end, but neither would have cared if they had known.

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><p><em>Thanks again for everything, everyone! If anyone is interested in the epilogue that I've written, let me know via PM or in a review. The voting for the next story will cease this Thursday, when I will either post the first chapter of my next story, or the epilogue of this one.<em>

_Please Review!_


	19. Epilogue

_Thanks to everyone who has stayed with me through this, you all are so awesome! Thanks to ravenclawlove for beta'ing this entire story for me. Every single one of you that has reviewed, or even just read this story, have made me happy, and confident enough to continue writing. Thank-you._

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><p>"Hermione, dear, could you bring out the bows for the chairs?" Mrs. Weasley bustled about, heading outside with the flowers.<p>

"Of course, Mrs. Weasley."

"Oh, call me Molly, dear," she said absentmindedly, using her wand to levitate the flowers and free up her hands.

"Yes, Mrs. Weasley." Neither Harry, nor Hermione, ever called her anything but that.

The two witches made quick work of decorating the white chairs, and the trellis at the front of the aisle. They were currently decorating for Ginny and Blaise's wedding. Ginny had insisted that it be at the Burrow, and Blaise had insisted that he hire it done. Naturally, Mrs. Weasley vetoed the decision, and here they were.

The wedding was set for five o'clock that evening, with dancing at sunset. It was going to be beautiful. Ginny was upstairs in her room, told that she wasn't allowed to help, and Blaise was with his friends and the Weasley boys at his manor, probably drinking. Hermione was maid of honor, of course, and Draco Malfoy was best man. Amongst the bridesmaids were Angelina, Fred's girlfriend, Luna Lovegood, and Fleur Weasley, Bill's wife. The groomsmen were Theo Nott, whom Hermione had grown very close to in the past months, Harry Potter, whom Blaise actually liked now, and Ron Weasley, because Blaise decided that he should have at least one of his future brothers-in-law in the wedding party.

Now that the decorations were done, Hermione needed to get upstairs and get both herself and Ginny ready. She jumped in the shower really quickly, scrubbing her hair and body as fast as she could. When she was done, she went on up to Ginny's room, knowing that everyone else was already up there.

"Mione!" The girls all yelled as one, causing her to laugh.

"What took you so long?" The bride demanded.

"Chill, Gin. Everything is perfect. Your mum's just putting the finishing touches on the cake." She walked over to the bag that she'd brought earlier and pulled out fresh underwear. The matching set was lime green with bright purple spots, and made her boobs look fantastic (according to Luna, who made it a point to tell her). The dresses were red tea length dresses, with spaghetti straps. The girls all did their make-up, hair, and got dressed, laughing all the way.

Mrs. Weasley came up when it was time to put Ginny's dress on her and sobbed uncontrollably for over twenty minutes. Finally, when they got her calmed down, they sent her out to make sure everyone was in their places to start. Five o'clock was nearly upon them.

At exactly five o'clock, Fleur stepped off to walk down the aisle. She was followed by Angelina, smiling brilliantly, and Luna brought up the rear with a dreamy look on her face. Hermione was glowing as she walked down the aisle, eyes only for George in the front row. He shot her a wink and she blushed prettily. Neither of them even noticed when Ginny walked down the aisle, until she thrust her bouquet at Hermione to much laughter.

The ceremony was beautiful, and Hermione would swear that she saw Blaise shed a tear at one point, she couldn't be sure though, as she was crying buckets of her own. Mrs. Weasley was once again crying her eyes out, but this time Arthur was holding her as he cried his own tears. Ginny was the youngest Weasley and the only girl; of course everyone would cry when she got married. When at last everyone walked back down the aisle at the end of the ceremony, there wasn't a dry eye in the house. Blaise's vows had been long and poetic about the times that they were in Hogwarts and he would see Ginny walking down the hallway. Ginny's vows were short and sweet, saying how much she loved him and the exact moment that she realized it.

The reception was to take place immediately after. With a little fancy wand work, Arthur, Bill, and Charlie moved the chairs that everyone was sitting in to the pavilion set up across the yard. George managed to snag a spot near Hermione, causing her to smile sweetly at him; they hadn't seen each other since the day before because of the wedding, and they had missed one another. He kissed her gently on the cheek, as the plates in front of them filled with delicious food that Mrs. Weasley had prepared.

The bride and groom had their first song, not even noticing all of the people watching. They then opened up the dance floor to everyone. George stood and held his hand out for Hermione to take, and led her onto the floor. It was a slow song, and they easily fit together when she stepped close and rested her head on his chest. Neither had any idea how long they danced for, both losing all track of time. All they knew was that at some point, they had watched the most beautiful, most romantic sunset that either of them had ever seen.

It was dark out, near the end of the reception; the cake had been cut, and the bride and groom had already snuck off, when George led her away from the pavilion they were in, and to the pond on the other side of the house. He smiled softly at her as he pulled her back to his chest, continuing to dance to the music that they could hear playing from where they were. He began humming the tune as he twirled her around the lawn.

It took her completely by surprise when he suddenly stopped and looked into her eyes.

"I am so in love with you," he whispered so quietly, she could barely hear from right in front of him.

"I'm so in love with you, too, Georgie." She smiled gently at him, loving this side of him that no one but her got to see.

"You mean so much to me, I'm forever grateful that you came to me that day and told me you loved me." He fished something out of his pocket, clearly getting nervous all of a sudden. "Maybe I'm feeling a little romantic with the wedding and all, but you would make me the happiest man alive, if you agreed to become my wife. Will you marry me, Mia?" He had whispered the whole speech, leaving her speechless with tears in her eyes.

"Yes," she answered with a wide grin, not even letting him open the small, black box that he'd been holding in his hand. He pulled her to him and kissed her soundly, trying to convey all of his feelings for her in that one kiss. It wasn't possible; they both knew that. She pulled back first and held her left hand out for him. He laughed and slid the ring with one large diamond, and many smaller ones arranged in a double wave pattern about half way around, on her finger.

"Do you li—?"

"Love it!" She cut him up, pulling him down by the neck for another kiss. That was how Harry found them awhile later.

"Did you finally ask her, George?" Harry was grinning cheekily, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet.

"Shut it, Potter," George answered, quickly going back in for another snog. Hermione wouldn't allow it though, and she pulled away to look at her friend.

"Did you finally tell him, Mione?" This got a funny look from the red-head in front of her. He looked at her, as she glared hatefully at her best friend.

"Tell me what?" George was confused.

"Oh, well, that answers that!" Harry laughed heartily to himself, as no one was joining him.

"Harry! Go back to Ronald, I'm sure he misses your sexy body," Hermione snapped at the-boy-who-should-probably-run-before-hexes-were-fired. They had all recently discovered the reason that Ron and Harry never had girlfriends: they were gay, and they were now together as a couple. It really was super cute, but Hermione couldn't care less at the moment, as George was still giving her funny looks, and Harry was still laughing loudly. "Perhaps you should leave." It wasn't a suggestion.

"Good idea!" Harry left as quickly as he had come, not wanting to stay in the awkward moment, no matter how funny, any longer. Hermione breathed a sigh of relief, but George was still looking at her expectantly.

"Well? What do you have to tell me? Is it a surprise? I love surprises!" He was like a kid at Christmas. It made Hermione smile to see him so happy, but she was still worried about what he would say when she told him his 'surprise'.

"It _is_ a surprise." She looked at her feet, suddenly finding the strap on her high heels very interesting.

"A good one?" George was grinning eagerly. _Maybe it's a vacation! Or she got a promotion at work! Or she bought a country! Or an island!_

"Well, I'm pregnant." George was so quiet after her admission that she couldn't bring herself to look at him. _Would this ruin everything? Would he still want to marry her? They'd only been engaged for five minutes! That has to be the shortest engagement ever!_

"A baby? Y-you're h-having a b-b-baby?" He didn't seem to know what to think. She decided to chance looking up at his face. She needed to know his reaction. To her surprise, he was grinning like a mad man. _Maybe he's finally lost that loose grip he had on sanity._

"Are you alright, George?" She didn't dare hope that he was happy about this.

"Alright?" He looked at her like she was the one going crazy. "I'm better than alright! I'm going to be a daddy!" He picked her up and swung her around, stopping only to kiss her hungrily. She was laughing and breathless by the time he pulled back, and he only did so so that he could drop to his knees in front of her. He gently touched her stomach, rubbing careful circles across it. She couldn't help but smile down at him gently. He leaned forward and kissed her belly, loving the thought that he was going to be a dad soon.

"I love you, George." Hermione had tears in her eyes as she watched her fiancé stare in wonder at her stomach.

"I love you, too. Both of you." He stood up, keeping his hand on her still-flat tummy, and kissed her sweetly. He took her hand, leading her back to the reception. They needed to say good-bye to everyone, and hopefully sneak out before they had to do any real clean-up work.

"I'm so happy, George." Hermione was crying again, this time in happiness.

"Me too, Mia." He used his special nickname for her. "It's hard to believe that this whole thing started with just a fling." They grinned at one another, deciding that they would just leave without saying anything. With a loud crack, the couple disappeared into the night.

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><p><em>AN: New story called 'Accidents Happen' will be up soon via the votes on the poll on my profile page. I will probably post the first chapter this weekend. Thanks for everything!_

_Please Review!_


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